Unable
by suspensegirl
Summary: After weeks of celibacy, a depressed Chuck finally confesses his love to a Blair who is so obviously dating a Lord Marcus for show. But what happens when she's too scared to give Chuck another chance?
1. What To Do

A/N: I do NOT own Gossip Girl

A/N: I do NOT own Gossip Girl. If I did, Chuck & Blair would stop not being together for WHATEVER reason. UGH!

I am in the process of writing the next chapter for "Never Again", I just have been ridiculously busy and I felt a crazy impulse to write this one-shot, so enjoy! And pleeeeeeeeeeeeease comment!

Okay, this is purely based off of the spoilers for season 2, so if you don't wanna know about those, do NOT continue reading. Apparently, there's this Lord Marcus guy that Blair is "dating" who happens to be the son of Nate's "lover"…haha, ironic? Who knows. Anyways, Chuck becomes friends with this guy and totally approves which makes Blair annoyed. Next to that, Chuck and his "performance levels" have not been as…let's say….amazing as they used to be. And apparently he just cannot seem to perform sexually….unless he sees Blair and is inspired but as soon as she leaves, he is left unable to do what he meant to do originally with any other girl (frustrating to him, I bet)…one day these two will be together again but until then…we must suffer as we watch their insanely amazing chemistry get wasted on whatever "significant other" they choose to be with. So, without further ado, I present to you….in Chuck's POV from the "early episodes of season 2" as far as I understand them…. UNABLE

………………………….

"This just doesn't happen to a guy like me. I was on top. I was the playboy of the UES. I was Nate's best friend, still am. I was in love with Blair…," he paused and sighed, "still am." Chuck got up from his seat on the couch and threw his phone across the room and watched as it hit the wall and broke in half, random screws and pieces scattering everywhere. He cringed. "Ugh, that's gotta be ugly."

He turned, and then came to the realization that something quite valuable was on that phone. "But pictures on there aren't!" He scrambled to the ground and frantically tried to piece his phone back together to no avail. In the midst of the tattered phone, he discovered the memory card. He grabbed it and plugged into his hand-held computer in his pocket. He gave a sigh of relief when Blair's face appeared on the screen. He smiled as he flipped through the remaining fifty pictures of the beautiful brunette. He fell back onto the couch, slid the little gadget back into his pocket and buried his face in his hands. "I'm hopeless."

There was a knock on the door. "Room service," a sweet, singsong voice spoke from behind the door.

Chuck sighed, aggravated with that which would greet him when he opened the door. He got up and opened the door as the petite blonde trotted in with her silver trays.

"You rang?" she said, lifting the lid off one of the trays, which contained a couple condoms and some expensive wine glasses.

"Yeah, and I reconsidered. I'm sorry," he said, smirking slightly.

Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?" She went to the door which had a full-length mirror on it and examined herself down to the very bit as if finding herself at fault.

Chuck gazed on in hopeless longing but knew this was for the best. "It's not you," he said, taking the girls hand and guiding her to the door.

"What? Do you have a girlfriend?" she asked, biting her lip.

He laughed as his head hang low momentarily. "No, unfortunately not," he said.

"Well then?" she was completely lost.

"Here," he said, sticking a fifty in her chest pocket, "if something changes, I'll let you know."

He sighed, allowing her curled bangs to fly up in her face. "Okay then," she said, taking off her heels and walking quite briskly out of the room.

Chuck turned away, "I am SUCH an idiot…" he said, banging his head on the bar table.

The girl came back in momentarily and let out a small giggle.

He turned up to look at her. "Yes?" he said, folding his arms.

She let out a few more laughs. "I was just gonna say you can keep the uh…items."

He looked down to the trays. "Ah…yes, thank-you."

"They're complimentary," she said, and then she was gone.

Chuck walked over to shut the door and then locked it. He looked at himself in the mirror, mocking himself. He wanted to mock the girl but well, she was everything he had asked for when he had called earlier. Ditzy. Blonde. Totally easy. Everything Blair wasn't. He collapsed onto the couch and rubbed his eyes. "This can't be happening to me. I am the playboy from the UPPER EAST SIDE!! I do girls for a hobby! Ugh!" he exclaimed, standing up and pacing the room. And although he wasn't completely willing to admit what had all changed him, he knew deep down it had been Blair. He had fallen in love with her. He had risked losing his best friend. He had torn her heart out by making her hurt almost as much as she had hurt him, because when she had gone back to Nate like everyone should've seen coming, Chuck had nearly abandoned his womanizing ways for the capture of that testy Tasmanian. And when finally all was right and he had her in his arms and in the embrace of his lips, he had cheated on her. Why? Because Bart Bass, the newlywed, had shown him just how much Chuck Bass had changed for Blair Waldorf. He had told him what he wasn't ready to hear or didn't want to admit. That he had fallen for Blair, and that in doing so he was becoming a nicer, more responsible, civil fellow who truly cared for people and wasn't only interested in himself and the exciting opportunities that offered. So, what did Chuck do? He ditched Blair from their romantic getaway. Was she torn? Who was he to tell? They had been nothing but passionate lovers before. But something had been different that last week before Tuscany. Something had been different that night of the Van der Bass wedding. The way she looked at him. It almost amounted to how desperately he was gazing at her. But then he screwed it up and with who?! Amelia! The freak of nature interior designer for Lily! Chuck sighed dramatically. These thoughts ever plagued his mind and he was unable to get rid of them. He had tried to play it cool. He had befriended Blair's new "boy" and made it as though he was the greatest guy on earth. And how that made her angry, but Chuck did love her at her sassiest. He smiled…and then he groaned. By this time the hand-held computer was in his hand and was nearly crushed by his tight grip on it. He realized this of course in time and placed it on the far side of the couch, far from his anxious fingertips. Chuck hadn't been able to have sex with random girls in over a month and it was KILLING his hormones. They were raging at full speed, ninety miles an hour and only increased when Blair was around, and not by a little…but by a whole mountain load.

"Oh God, what is happening?!" he asked, looking to the ceiling and only finding a smoke alarm. He sighed and landed back on the couch. He grabbed the little computer and flipped through the pictures of Blair again.

There was another knock on the door. Chuck rolled his eyes. "Go away!"

"It's Nate," the voice from behind the door said.

"Oh…," Chuck mused, "could you come back later man? I'm kind of stressed."

There was a clinking noise and the door opened.

Chuck rolled his eyes again, "Or not," he muttered, focusing more intently on the gadget before him.

Nate looked at him, confused, and shut the door. "When are YOU stressed?" he asked, folding his arms.

"I get stressed," Chuck said, placing the gadget behind him.

Nate raised his eyebrows. "Really? Like when? When too many girls are all over you?" he laughed. "Speaking of," he said, looking around, "Where are all of your playmates? I thought you called for room service over an hour ago."

Chuck sighed. "I did," he said.

"Hmmm," Nate said, trying hard not to laugh, "well…if you called for room service and uh," he lifted the lid of a tray, "the condoms and wineglasses are still here unused, then uh….what happened?"

Chuck didn't look at him.

"Trying to get someone pregnant?" he chuckled.

"Alright, enough," Chuck said, standing up, but he forgot to grab his little computer and the minute he had taken two steps from the couch he regretted it. He was frustrated and pulling a few fingers through his already tousled hair. He turned to see Nate going through the pictures on his phone.

"Five hundred fifty pictures…and all of Blair Waldorf," he said, smirking up and looking at Chuck momentarily. Chuck looked like he wanted to say something, but was in more of a need to get that little gadget back. "Yeah…uh," he muttered.

"Fifty new pics, ooo!" Nate saracastically said and then laughed it off, setting the object on the bar behind him. "I thought you were over her," he said, walking towards Chuck.

"I am," he said.

"Chuck."

"What?"

"Chuck!"

"Ugh," Chuck said, sitting down on the couch again.

Nate just laughed and poured himself some wine in one of the unused wineglasses. "Do you mind?" he asked, gesturing towards Chuck, who waved him off. "And could I take some uh…"

Chuck looked at him quirkily with a hint of sarcasm. "Of course. It's not like I'm going to be using them…" he sighed miserably.

"Thanks," Nate said, sticking one of the condoms in his pocket. "I was on my way over to—"

"Lord Marcus' mother's plantation?" Chuck asked almost infuriated.

"Hey, I found her first," Nate smirked, heading towards the window. "God, it's beautiful here," he said smugly.

"Yeah whatever," Chuck said. "Look, just take what you need and go. My pride is suffering here and the last thing I need is you boasting about what I seem unable to attain."

"Alright, alright," Nate said, waving his hand in a truce. "I can see you're suffering," he let out a snicker. On his way towards the door though, he stopped and looked at Chuck who was twiddling his thumbs on the couch.

"Chuck," Nate said, now completely serious.

He looked up annoyed. "Yes, dear Nathaniel?"

"She was way happier with you."

Chuck was frozen. He couldn't even defend himself. He knew it was what he had wanted to here.

Nate nodded his head and headed out the door, closing it behind him. The lock clicked.

Chuck just sat there, almost in shock, just wanting to know what to do with himself, what to do with this information. All he knew was one thing. He couldn't perform without her. He couldn't function without her. He couldn't remain sane without her…at least not for very long. He drifted…those first instances he had felt such things…

_"I can't sleep. I can't eat…."_

_"Butterflies?"_

He snapped back. "Yes, butterflies. They could not be murdered. They would never go away. And as long as he was without her….he would always be…unable."

…………………………………..

A/N: So……what'd ya all think?! Pleeeeeeease let me know! And if you really like it, I'll continue it! Hehe. Of course though, I will write another chapter to the other story beforehand, hehe. Hope your summer is going awesome!! D I leave in a week for Mexico for about 10 days though…so don't be expecting anything during that time. I'll be sure to catch up on these though, when I return. ;)


	2. Breaking Under Pressure

I own nothing

I own nothing!!

A/N: I've decided to continue this story! Why? Because I'm obsessed with the season 2 spoilers and the determined episode of the C & B reunion seems to be getting farther and farther away! tear So….to prevent from breaking down, I will write this and you will review. Thank-you. )

………………………………………..

Ch.2—Breaking Under Pressure

"Ahhh…..S!" Blair Waldorf groaned out to her best friend as they walked down the sunny sidewalks of the Hamptons.

S turned a knowing eye to her troubled counterpart.

"I'm so in love with him," she rubbed her eyes in agony.

"With James?" Serena asked, nudging Blair who remained unphased.

"Noooooo…."

Serena slapped her and Blair looked up just in time to see Chuck walking out of a nearby shop. Blair gasped. "I thought he was at his suite the rest of the day," she muttered as they both jumped into the doorway of a closed shop, hoping not to be noticed.

"So did I!" Serena whispered. Then, a smirk spread across her face. "Too bad you don't have your boy toy with you to make him jealous."

Blair sighed. "Yeah, like that would do anything," she sighed again. She peered over S's shoulder and noticed that Chuck had crossed the street and delved himself into another store. The two girls came out from their hiding spot and continued walking. "He knows I don't like him," Blair said, continuing the conversation.

Serena nodded knowingly.

"And it doesn't matter what I do to prove that I don't, he just won't get it. I've giggled at James, gone on several outings with him, appeared happy go lucky and practically professed my love to him in Chuck's presence, and what has that gotten me? A thick grin on that stupid Bass who won't let me forget how head over heels I've fallen, ugh."

Serena looked at Blair sympathetically. "Ohhh, B."

"You know, he may have had the butterflies initially, but I've got them now and I simply cannot get rid of them. I don't want to. I mean, I can't just let Chuck get away with abandoning me for the summer and goodness knows he probably cheated on me in the process, but I just miss him so much, you know?"

Serena looked at her softly.

"I hate being fake," she sighed dramatically. "I just want him to look at me again like he did that night at the wedding…but he doesn't even seem interested! Every time I see him, he's practically got another girl on his arm and as much as I love our witty banter, it leaves me with a horrible twisted feeling in the pit of my stomach," she grumbled and crossed her arms.

"Well, you look gorgeous," Serena encouraged.

Blair fake laughed. "Thanks, S, that's totally what I wanted to hear. All better," she said, sarcastically, glaring at her as she continued to walk.

Serena sighed. "Just trying to help," she muttered, catching up with her.

………………………………………………….

Chuck paced inside the antique store he had just entered. He had tried staying cooped up in that stupid suite all day, but it would only cause dejavus of inviting women up and sending them away to avoid humiliation. He could NOT get back together with Blair. He wasn't that kind of guy that could sustain a relationship. He had cheated on his supposed girlfriend a week after they had gotten together. She had obviously moved on. Even if he had checked it out and had been certain that she wasn't really interested in this guy and was just using James to make Chuck jealous, it did the trick. No matter how fake she may have giggled at him, it was one giggle she wasn't directing towards Chuck and it killed him. He had told her. He had told her it would never work. He had told her the minute she had come back to the Hamptons…

_The brunette beauty glided down the crystal white steps from the private plane. She was dressed in perfect white and she glimmered in the sun. Chuck had been hiding in the shadows, stepped forward, dazzling in his white suit as well. Blair was oblivious to his presence but as soon as he was within five feet of her she turned and saw him. She seemed to be ecstatic at first, but then an angry and upsetting gaze filled her features._

_"Waldorf," he said, seeming casual._

_"Bass," she looked him up and down and they resumed her role as b of the universe. "Who have you been screwing all summer?"_

_He let out a quiet laugh. "Unfortunately not yourself," he said, pulling her closer._

_She took his hand off of her waist and through it by her side. "Is there something you want to tell me?" she asked, knowingly. "Maybe a good reason for abandoning me all summer?"_

_He was speechless. He sighed. "We can't happen, Blair."_

_Her brows furrowed. She was at a loss for words. She looked down not wanting to show how close her tears were ready to fall. She looked up resolved. "I wouldn't have it any other way," she said, backing up._

_He came forward and grabbed her wrist gently. He played with the jewels on her bracelet. "I'm just not—"_

_"A committed kind of guy," she finished. "You're Chuck Bass. Womanizer. Underage Boozer. Cheater…," suddenly a realization occurred to her, "in more than just one way I'm guessing?" Her voice sounded strained. _

_He looked down. _

_She looked at him furiously and shook her head. "Why should I be surprised?"_

_He looked straight at her, determination in his eyes. Had his decision changed so quickly? "Blair," he whispered._

_"It's okay, Chuck," she looked at him with longing but then dropped her hands to her side. He let her. "I've moved on," she said, clearing her throat._

_"You what?" he asked. _

_"James?" she called to the plane._

_"I'm coming, beautiful Blair of mine," was the response._

_Blair smiled. Then, a handsome young man climbed down off the plane. Chuck looked at them confused as the man placed his arm around Blair's waist and she let him._

_"At the landing pad where you were supposed to be at the beginning of the summer, I met a guy named Ben who apparently is part of your father's company somehow?"_

_Chuck nodded, wondering where this was going._

_"Well, once we got to Europe, he introduced me to Lord Marcus, James rather."_

_"Hey," James said, putting his hand forward to shake Chuck's hand, who shook it reluctantly._

_Chuck nodded his head, perturbed. _

_"James, this is Chuck, my EX-boyfriend," she smiled fakely._

_Then, just the three of them stood there. James looked awkward amongst the two glarers. He was a little oblivious to how intense they had been. To say the least._

"Sir? Sir?" the clerk asked, the once pacing Chuck who had resolved to a still stance in the middle of the shop.

Chuck snapped out of his thoughts and looked at the man with arrogant curiousity.

"Are you all right?" he asked. The old man, pushed up his glasses on his face.

"Never better," he said, walking quite fast paced out of the shop.

The clerk sighed and began to count the quarters lying under the counter. "Another customer…with no intention of buying anything," he rolled his eyes. "25, 50, 75…"

…………………………………………………………

Nate cell phone was ringing off the hook. He had answered it the first few times, but it was becoming ridiculous. Everytime he had checked it, it had been Chuck, wondering where Blair was, wondering how he could live without her. "And he says he's not over her…" Nate rolled his eyes, looking at the 57th text message. "This is just not like him," he sighed. He finally decided to call him back.

"Nate!" Chuck said, desperately.

"Don't get excited," Nate said, hesitantly. "I'm with Catherine….and SOMEONE keeps calling me and texting me and draining my phone of its energy," he said, with a smirk on his face.

"I need some alcohol," was the only replied.

Nate laughed. "Isn't there some in the suite?"

"I'm not at the suite, and I don't plan on going back there anytime soon."

"Too many memories?" he asked, referring to his continual denial of nearly every room service maid in the hotel.

Chuck scoffed.

"Look, if you wanna get with Blair, just go find her. You said yourself that this James character wasn't really someone she was interested in."

Chuck scoffed again.

Nate laughed. "Well, I'll leave you to your scoffing, and if you will please not call again or at least for awhile…then, I can get to some personal business of my own?"

Chuck nodded. "Right…okay." The phone clicked.

"Thank-you," Nate said, putting his phone in the depths of his pants on the chair and walking slowly into the next room, shutting the door behind him.

………………………………………………

Chuck began to pace again. This time inside a jewelery store.

"Sir?" the clerk asked, this time a young woman—very attractive and yet attracting none of Chuck's direct attention.

He looked up and glared at her. "Do all of you respond in that way?" He grunted and headed out the door, faster than ever. His mind was racing and just as he thrust through the door, he crashed into…Blair Waldorf and her ice lemonade.

………………………………………………………..

A/N: PLEEEEEEEEEEASE COMMENT!! I'LL BE BACK IN TWO WEEKS! D


	3. The Idea

I OWN NOTHING

I OWN NOTHING!!

A/N: Okay, I know I said I'd be back in two weeks, but I just had to write another chapter, so please pleeeeeeeease review! )

………………………………………….

Ch.3—The Idea

Due to the collision, both Blair and Chuck had fallen opposite each other and were dusting the dirt off of their brightly colored outfits. Blair looked down at her sundress to discover where ice tea had landed. There was a dark brown liquid trail beginning at the top of her dress and ending at her waist line. It was sinking in and she was becoming more infuriated by the second. She grabbed her cup and threw it at the boy across from her who was still picking dirt specs off the collar of his shirt.

"Hey!" he said, tossing the cup into the street. "Watch where you throw these things!"

"Ugh," Blair stood up, aggravated by his attitude and the stain she simply couldn't live with. "YOU should watch where you're GOING, Bass!" She looked down at her dress and wimpered. "I just got this yesterday too…"

Chuck sighed, annoyed, as he stood up.

Blair looked up. "But then again, you always did have a thing for ruining my dresses," she said, hinting at the events at the Debutant Ball.

"Enough," he said. "I was in a hurry, and shouldn't you be with Serena anyways?"

"She stepped inside a store for the moment, a store I had no interest in purchasing things from, so I decided to take a brisk walk until she had finished her browsing," she said, matter of factly.

Chuck smirked.

"What?" Blair asked, glaring at him.

He shook his head. "Nothing," he said.

She sighed. "Obviously not. Well, if you'll excuse me…I must return to my suite to change clothes because SOMEONE decided to run into me today."

Chuck held out his hand in a gesture. "Don't let me stop you," he said.

"I wont," she said, spinning on her heel and walking the other direction.

Chuck put his hand up to his forehead and discovered the sweat forming there. He wiped it away with the Kleenex in his pocket and stretched out his collar so as to refrain from lack of breathing. He could still see Blair prancing off in the distance. Serena had now joined her, a little upset that she couldn't spend longer in the desired store of choice, but understood immediately once Blair told her what happened. She turned back and looked at Chuck, who showed a helpless, innocent look which nobody bought anymore, but he kept staring. Serena turned back towards Blair again, trying to console her. Chuck couldn't turn his face away. That beautiful bouncing Blair who he had accidently bumped into. Oh, how he could still feel in that brief moment the touch of her body against his. Other girls disgusted him at this point…they were nothing compared to her. He didn't want them near her. But what was he supposed to do when he couldn't have her because of his own doing? Chuck turned and walked the other direction, back towards his suite. By now Blair and Serena had turned the corner. There was no point in staring on into what was no longer there.

……………………………………………………..

Blair's phone rang. "Ugh," she said.

"Who is it?" Serena asked.

"James…do I HAVE to speak with him?"

Serena laughed. "Well, he is your boyfriend, B."

"FAKE boyfriend," she said pointedly.

"Even so…if you wanna make Chuck jealous, this is the way."

"Hmmm…" a smile appeared on Blair's lips.

"What?" Serena asked, curious.

"I've got just the idea." She picked up the phone. "Hey James," she said, smiling sweetly into the phone. "What are you doing this afternoon? Nothing? Fantastic. Meet me by the beach in ten minutes." Her phone clicked.

"What do you have planned up your sleeve?" Serena asked, suspiciously.

"You'll see," Blair grinned. She dialed Chuck's number. It didn't pick up for several rings. "Ugh, he's probably sleeping with some tramp again. You'd be surprised how quickly he can get back to his suite," she said, looking at Serena who nodded knowingly.

Then a miserable groan was heard on the other line. "Chuck?" Blair asked, confused.

"Oh…..uh, hey! Give me the phone!" was heard on the other line followed by clearing of the throat. "Waldorf, to what pleasure to owe?"

B smiled. "What are you doing? Or rather who?" she asked, disgusted.

He cleared his throat. "The usual," he said smugly. _No one. _

"Well, could you tear yourself away for an afternoon at the beach?" she asked. "Nate and Serena will be there too and a bunch of our friends."

Serena stopped her. "We will?"

"Shhh!" Blair shushed.

Chuck smiled. "I'd love to," he said. "Give me twenty minutes." The phone clicked.

Blair put away her phone and hid it in her tiny satin purse. "Step 1 accomplished…"

Serena looked confused and they continued to walk forward. "Uh…."

Blair turned to look at the blonde and smiled smartly. "Oh and you're not coming."

……………………………………….

The smell of the sea was intensified the closer to the beach he came. The sand between his toes, the sight of Blair especially was all too much to handle. Chuck Bass didn't even know what he was doing. But he knew one thing. When he saw Blair and her boy toy sitting in their reclining chairs just inches away from the sandy terrain, and no one else…this had to be a set up.

"Waldorf, where are the rest of our counterparts?" he asked, smugly placing his towel over his shoulder.

Blair looked up and smiled at him. "Where are the rest of yours?"

He looked down at her in stupidity. Then, cleared his throat. "I don't bring the ladies everywhere with me…how am I supposed to pick more up?"

Blair cocked her head to the side. "Well, have a seat…I'm sure there'll be more to come," she said, offering him the chair.

He sat down and watched the waves coming in and out. Meanwhile, James was sitting next to Blair, holding her hand and feeding her strawberries. "Mmm, so yummy," she said, exaggerating every cute girly noise she could make.

After some time, Chuck couldn't handle it and headed off towards the sea.

"Where you off to Bass?" Blair asked, innocently.

He just kept walking. She smiled. "Oh baby," she said, turning to James, "Chuck can't swim very well and I hear the best of swimmers come from your part of the world, so uh?"

He smiled. "Of course darling." He leaned in to kiss her, but she turned her face and he kissed her cheek. He cleared his throat. "I'll be back," he said, heading after Chuck into the ocean.

She smiled briefly and then pulled a tissue out of her purse to wipe the wet mark off of her cheek. "Ew, gross."

……………………………………………….

"What are you doing?" Chuck asked, releasing himself from James' arm around his waist.

"Don't be shy. Blair told me you can't swim."

He scoffed. "Did she really? Did she also tell you how much she's faking being into you?" he asked, glaring at him.

"What? No," he turned back to the beach to a smiling and waving Blair. "See, she's into me."

Chuck rolled his eyes. "Whatever, man. I can swim and the last thing I need is you dating Blair and giving into her demands concerning me."

He laughed. "It's okay to be jealous."

Chuck swam away. "Not jealous!"

James laughed and swam in a different direction. On the beach, Blair was casually flipping through a magazine….occasionally looking up and smiling to herself.

…………………………………………………………………..

A/N: pleeeeeeeeeeeease review! I have lots of plans for this story, but I hate to continue it without much desired reviews, so please do it! D


	4. Resolve Faltering

A/N: Hey all, sorry it's taken so long….MAKE SURE TO REVIEW! D

I DO NOT OWN GOSSIP GIRL!!

Ch.4—Resolve Faltering

It seemed forever since the boys had gone out to the ocean and though Blair was sure Chuck was getting severely annoyed, she wanted the action by her. She sighed. She really did want Chuck. James…or Marcus or whatever his name was, was cool. He was a Lord for crying out loud! That word alone made all her dreams come true, but…she sighed again. He wasn't Chuck.

Blair tossed her magazine off to the side and drummed her fingertips across her bare stomach, when she felt a few drops of water hit her nearly sundried hair. She gasped, pulling her sunglasses off her head and onto the ground with her magazine. She looked up and saw…

_The brown eyed beauty stood and looked at her. "Why look what I've found here?" he smirked._

"_Chuck," her eyes glittered. He could make her feel so beautiful with hardly even trying. Even his perverted remarks made her feel special. She pulled him down by his tank top and planted a heated kiss to his full lips. They both smiled._

…her eyes fluttered, allowing her to snap out of her daydream. It wasn't Chuck above her, it was Marcus. She forced a smile, much too big for what she was really feeling. "All done swimming?" she asked, flirtatiously

"Yeah, Chuck went out pretty deep."

She scoffed. "Can't you swim?"

"Of course!" he said, full of confidence, though partly she doubted him. "I just wanted to be here with you," he said leaning to kiss her, but she turned her face so he only got the edge of her cheek. He cleared his throat, pulling back. "Blair, can we talk?"

"Sure, sweetie, what is it?" she asked, folding her hands delicately over her bended knee.

"Uh…." He paused for awhile, causing her eyes to wander curiously. "Why won't you let me kiss you?" he asked.

"I do…," she paused. She couldn't let him catch on. She put a hand warmly on his shoulder. "I'm just not ready for more yet," she smiled innocently. She had been lying of course. She was ready for so much more than a kiss on the lips, but all she wanted was Chuck for that. She could play the card of innocent school girl wanting to take it slow, at least for awhile.

He smiled contently. He had bought it. "I understand," he said. Then, he stood up and started walking away. "I'm going to go get us some snacks," he said, before turning away completely.

"Okay, sounds good," she smiled sweetly, but her face fell as soon as he left. "Ugh," she groaned, "this is getting too hard."

….

Chuck smirked, walking towards the beach. He had witnessed the whole scene. She didn't like him, she was bored by him. He finished him climb up the beach and leaned against a nearby umbrella stand in the sand. "Bored already?" he said, grabbing Blair's drink and taking a sip.

She looked up at him, trying to be mortified but only fulfilling it in the honesty that he had taken her drink. She tried to reach it from where she was sitting but he kept raising it higher, after he was finished drinking. "Hey!" she whined.

He couldn't believe it. This was too much. Much too much fun. Chuck's smirk grew into a wider cracked out grin. "Hey what?" he asked, leaning down a little bit, to torment her.

The heat from his face was too much for Blair, but she would not let it get to her. "Give me my drink," she cringed, rising up from the seat, supporting herself with her arm behind her.

Chuck stood up completely and finished drinking the colored liquid, releasing some oxygen as he handed the empty glass back to a shocked Blair. "As requested," he winked, and headed in the direction of the snacks, stealing Blair's towel from under her to dry off his soaked hair.

"Ugh!" Blair huffed, leaning back into her chair and sinking into a pout mode. But she couldn't help herself and after a few moments of this, her mouth slinked back into a grin. God, how she loved that boy.

….

Marcus came back around and pecked her on the head. Blair cringed, unbeknownst to him, but Chuck could see as he was also coming back not far behind. He chuckled, in an attempt to hide it. "What?" Marcus asked him, noticing.

Chuck covered his mouth. "Nothing," he smirked. Then noticing Marcus didn't buy it, he said, " I just remembered…"

Blair looked at him cautiously, hoping he wouldn't say something that would completely embarrass her.

"an inside joke," he finished, seeing Blair's face fall to relief.

"Ah," Marcus said. "Well, I won't force you to share it with us."

"Thank-you my good man," Chuck said, raising his new found wine glass to the gentleman across from him.

"Ah, it's a beautiful day today, isn't it?" Marcus said, wrapping his arm around Blair and gazing out at the sea.

Chuck became serious, being unable to take his gaze from Blair's beautiful face staring at him. "It certainly is."

Blair looked away. This revenge thing really wasn't working as she had planned. She hadn't wanted to do this, but perhaps there was nothing she could do. She turned her head, fully planning to kiss Marcus full on the lips, but out slipped. "Could you move over a little bit?"

Marcus looked at her, even a little hurt it seemed. "You know," he said, fully accepting the situation. "I actually have to be getting back. The Duchess wanted to see me earlier anyways. Some family talk."

"Well, I'll come with you!" Blair jumped at the idea. Any chance to be with the duchess was a chance to get closer to her lifelong goal of being a princess. She glowed at the idea.

Marcus just smiled gently. He took her hand and kissed it. "Maybe next time," he said, grabbing his towel and walking off toward the parking lot.

Chuck scoffed once he had left, and Blair turned to him in a full on glare. "Scared away prince charming already?" he asked.

"This is YOUR fault," she said, quite angry now. She stood up to face him head on.

He stood from his leaning position and stood until they were only inches apart. He could feel her breathing quicken. "You're right. But I can't help that I'm intoxicating," he smirked, grabbing his towel and heading in the same direction Marcus had gone.

Blair looked at him disgusted, as he gave her a double take just before fully walking away. But after a moment, she took in the air around her quite desperately. She cleared her throat and tried to find a way to get that insinuating Bass out of her head. She pounced back onto her chair and pulled out her cell. "Hey, S?" she paused waiting for a response. "We need to talk; this revenge thing is not working so much for me." She clicked her phone shut, and was interrupted by the quiet sigh of a figure above her.

"I forgot my sunglasses," Chuck leaned across her middle to grab them from the other side. She was hardly breathing again. He would not take his eyes off her.

But somehow she found some inner strength and forced her hand swiftly across his face, relaxing into her chair afterwards. "That's not all you forgot, Bass."

He stood up slowly, massaging the slapped area of his face which had a slight sting to it now. "You always did like it rough," he whispered, leaning down to her ear once again.

Her brows furrowed and she pushed him away. This time he would leave for sure. Unfortunately for her, he had made his effect known. And as he strode off, she turned to look at him and sighed. She was so lovesick. "Why did you have to leave me?" she whispered.

…

Serena plopped down on the chair next to her. "What did you need to talk about?" she asked intrigued.

"I think this was a bad idea," Blair sighed.

Serena couldn't help but let out a small chuckle. "By 'this' you mean? The beach 'party'? Dating Marcus when you're clearly still in love with Chuck…"

"Shhh!" Blair hushed her.

"Who's gonna hear?" Serena asked, incredulously.

Blair leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. "Everybody," she wimpered.

Serena smiled. "I think you need to talk to him."

Blair looked up. "What? You're crazy!"

Her smile grew even wider. "That's my point."

"Ugh," Blair sighed again. "Shouldn't you be with some loser Lacrosse player? Or Dan perhaps? I don't even know anymore…"

"You know why that is, Blair?"

"Because I'm a selfish B?" she asked with a devious grin on her face.

Now it was Serena's turn to fall back into her chair. "God, you two really do belong together."

"Me and Marcus? Yeah, I know," Blair said giggling.

"Ugh," Serena pushed her out of her chair and was quite delighted with her little squeal. "Get over yourself."

Blair sat up, blowing her sandy hair out of her face. "Please, that's not like me, S."

Serena rolled her eyes and waited for Blair to get back in her chair. "What do you need to talk to me about then?" she asked, smiling.

Blair was quiet for awhile. Then, she looked up to Serena, completely serious. "I need to talk to him, don't I?"

Serena nodded.

Blair sighed. "Yep…I officially suck at getting revenge on that Chuck Basstard."

S burst out into laughter…and Blair joined her. "You so love him," Serena said, in the midst of the giggles.

"Ha! Hardly…" Blair shook her head. But she knew it was true. She grabbed a new drink that had been set there for her and swirled it slowly. "But he is amazing in—"

"Stop!" Serena held up her hand.

Blair giggled. "Well, he is!"

Serena shook her head. "And this is what I interrupted my schedule for…"

Blair smirked. Maybe this day wasn't so bad off after all…

…….

A/N: LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK!! It's longer than usual and maybe didn't end on a great cliffhanger lol, not to mention not too much revenge….but I was thinking…what if Blair was failing at revenge? Ha. ;p PLEASE REVIEW! D


	5. Fading Kiss

A/N: I OWN NOTHING!!

….

Ch.5—Fading Kiss

Blair was walking along the streets of The Hamptons when she spotted Chuck entering a store, mere feet in front of her. She took a deep breath and forced herself to open the door leading into the store he had gone in. She couldn't even tell what the store was, all she could see was Chuck looking at something in the aisle ahead of her. A bell rang when she opened the door and he instantly stood up from his bent over position and gazed at her. She looked so nervous standing there, clutching her purse. Just then, there phone's went off.

**HEY UPPER EAST SIDERS, GOSSIP GIRL HERE. SEEMS B HAS FOLLOWED C INTO A STORE IN THE HAMPTONS? AND WE THOUGHT SHE WAS DATING A LORD, I GUESS HE WASN'T WHAT SHE HOPED—**

Blair shut her phone, unwilling to read the rest of the message. She saw Chuck had done the same thing.

"Can I help you with something, Miss?" the store clerk asked her, snapping her out of her daze.

She didn't even turn to look at him, she just looked up at Chuck, who was caught in her beautiful eyes. "No thank-you," she said. She walked straight towards him, grabbed his collar and pulled him into a backroom.

"See something you like, waldorf?" he asked, smugly.

"What are you doing to me?!" she shoved him against the wall. She leaned forward and took in his scent. Both of their breathing quickened. It was all that could be heard.

"Blair…" he whispered huskily, pushing some of her stray locks behind her ear.

"Shh," she said, a tear falling down her face. "Don't ruin it," she looked into his eyes.

He closed his mouth and just looked at her, but being mere inches apart was not helping either of their sanity. He finally moved forward and captured her lips with his own. Hungrily she pressed her body up against him and moaned into his mouth as his hands gently found all of her tender spots.

Finally, she pulled away. "No," she swallowed hoarsely. She stepped away and looked into his confused face. "You left me," she said, and walked back into the store.

He followed her and grabbed her arm, but she snapped out of it, walking into the street. The clerk just shook his head at them as they passed out. "Blair, wait!" he said.

"No!" she spun around. "You had your chance! You had more than enough chances! It doesn't matter that I want you, you DON'T love me!"

"I do!" he said.

She was silenced. "Prove it," she whispered. He lunged at her and captured her in another passionate kiss. She sunk into it and found her hands soon after wrapped into his hair. Around them, they could hear camera phones going off but none of it seemed to matter.

"Blair," she heard her name. It was not one of her friends, nor the one she loved, the one she was kissing. It was Marcus, her supposed boyfriend. She pushed Chuck away and looked at her boyfriend apologetically, but Chuck found himself clinging to Blair's waist and she didn't attempt to push him away any farther. Marcus just looked at them and then turned to walk away. Blair shok her head miserably. "I need to go after him," she whispered, nuzzling her face in Chuck's neck.

"Why?" he asked. "You don't love him. You love me."

"You don't know that," her eyebrows furrowed.

Now Chuck was confused. "What was this then?"

She shook her head, attempting to forget the question. "Is this all you can give me for proof? A kiss?" she turned away from him. "How do I know you're not going to leave me again?" she sniffled.

He walked after her and turned her around, holding her hands in his own. "Blair, I love you. I'm sorry it took me so long to figure out, but…" he looked down and then back at her, "I had to be sure. I could never lie to you, even if it was in my own uncertainty. I could never…do what Nate did to you."

She dropped their hands. "But you did, didn't you? You screwed random women all summer."

"And I regret every minute of it," he laid a tender kiss on her cheek.

Slow, hot tears poured from her eyes. "Chuck, I just….I can't abandon Marcus."

He sighed. "So, because you don't want to ruin your image? I just….I love you, I'm willing to do anything…." He couldn't speak. What else could he say?

She cried. She wanted to stay with him so much. "I just….I need some time to think, Chuck."

He nodded. She brought his head down to meet her lips and she kissed him. "Oh God, Chuck." The looks between them were filled with longing and sadness, sadness for what might never be. Both of their phones vibrated, but neither of them looked. They knew it was Gossip Girl reporting their recent actions. Chuck kept watching Blair until she disappeared behind a building. He sighed and went back inside the store.

"Can I help--ah, it's you," the clerk nodded at Chuck.

He chuckled. "Yeah."

"So, did you uh….get the girl?" he smirked.

Chuck glared at him and turned down another aisle.

The clerk sighed. "If she loves you, she'll come around."

"yeah…in my dreams," he muttered.

…..

A/N: TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK!! DDDDDDDDDD


	6. The Hardest Decision

A/N: I own nothing!!!!! Sorry it took me sooo long to update! I will try to update my stories more often. And this story is far from over, so please don't abandon it!

……..

Ch.6—The Hardest Decision

Blair paced back and forth in her room. She loved Chuck, she thought she did at least. It did seem almost impossible, but…well, at the very least she desired him. Marcus was NOT giving her what she needed. She should've gone after Marcus right away, but she didn't want to. She didn't want to be anywhere near him. She wanted to be by Chuck all the time. He had hurt her so bad, but he had finally confessed that he loved her. Wasn't that what she always wanted? She sighed, sitting down on her bed.

"What am I going to do with myself?" she muttered.

So many thoughts raced through her mind. Marcus could give her what she'd always wanted…royalty, and she supposed she could learn to like him, if not love him. She groaned. He just didn't have that Chuck-factor though.

She got up and began pacing again. Maybe happiness was not supposed to come to Blair Waldorf. What if Chuck messed up again? What if she was left heartbroken…AGAIN? She shook her head and wiped away a stray tear. If she was with Marcus, then she could guard herself…and as empty as she would feel, at least she wouldn't be heartbroken. She could rise in the social standings, people would look to her instead of Serena simply because of who she was with. It seemed shallow and maybe the most insecure thing she had or would ever decide on, but she couldn't risk getting hurt again.

"Besides, Chuck could go back to his old lifestyle…with all his women and scotch, not that he'd quit that completely," she scoffed, forcing herself to believe that his love was a passing thing.

She reached for her phone. Another tear fell. She wouldn't tell Chuck about her decision. Gossip Girl would find out soon enough, and he would hate her for it…but he'd get over it. After all, Chuck had never loved before. Eventually, he would forget the feelings all together.

….

"I'm glad you came," Blair said, hesitantly leaning against a tree in Central Park.

"I almost didn't," Marcus said, bitterness evident in his voice.

She looked down at her feet knowingly. He walked towards her and took her hands in his own. She looked into his eyes. "We've come here a lot, to this park," he said.

She nodded.

"And every time it's been because there was something important you wanted to tell me."

She opened her mouth to speak, but found herself unable to find the words.

"All I need to know, is if this particular conversation is going to end up with me in your life or out of it."

She sighed, tears in her eyes. "What you saw today…." She paused, scared to even speak the words, but Marcus gripped her hands tighter and she found the reason to continue. "…was not what it looked like."

He let go of her hands and his eyebrows furrowed. "What it looked like was you're not over your ex-boyfriend. I'm guessing then that's also the reason you won't let me kiss you."

"No," she said, forcefully. She gripped his hands again and he stared hard at her. "I…I…I've just been hurt so much."

He looked at her concerned.

"I want to start over…with you. I'm done with my past lovers," she sighed, because she was truly starting to believe her own words. "Today was a mistake, and it won't happen again, I promise it won't."

He gave her a sad smile and embraced her. "I will never hurt you, Blair."

And she cried into his shoulder. "Yes, I know, I'm sorry."

He pulled back and wiped away her tears. She couldn't believe how vulnerable she had just become. It was ridiculous, and Marcus didn't even know the full reasons for it. But now this was for real. There was no point in making Chuck jealous, and maybe she wanted there to be deep down, and this time it would look for real. Marcus leaned in to kiss Blair's cheek, but she turned her face and he landed on her lips. She kissed him, she kissed him with such a passion that she could almost not control herself. Tears flew down her cheeks, pouring torrents of sadness, but to everyone else it would seem nothing but complete joy. Marcus wrapped his arms around her tiny waist and she forced her hands into his air. It was not Chuck's hair. It was not Chuck's lips. It was not Chuck's arms wrapped around her, pulling her into some fantastical world. It was Marcus. Marcus Beaton. A Lord. And the man she would force herself to love…so that she would never be broken.

….

Chuck's phone vibrated and he flipped it open, eager to receive a message from Blair. What he saw both horrified and scarred him. A picture of Marcus and Blair making out heavily in Central Park. He closed his mouth and swallowed to keep from throwing up.

**Well well upper east siders…seems B can't make up her mind. Lord Marcus in the morning, Cin early afternoon and nearly nightfall, she's entranced again by the royal's features, moreso than before. But don't be sad C. I know a number of women who would be more than willing to knock down your door.**

**You know you love me. XOXO Gossip Girl **

He clicked his phone shut and the tears fell, slowly…disappearing into his skin. Chuck did not cry. Not over Blair, not over anybody. He picked up his phone again and deleted every picture of Blair Waldorf, though her image would forever by imprinted on his mind. He threw the phone across the room, and unfortunately for his rage, it did not burst into a million pieces. He stormed across his room and threw things everywhere. Tables overturned, couch cushions tossed in different directions, wine glasses destroyed in shards across the floor. He fell and cursed himself for ever falling in love, for ever thinking love would be worth it. The sky darkened. The clouds covered the stars and there was no moon. As he lie shivering on the floor, too torn to get up and turn on the heat or turn on the lights even, he cried. He gnashed his teeth and wished to God he hadn't broken so many glasses…and broken them so close to where the scotch sat. The only thing near him that he could reach as the room phone.

After many moments of contemplation, he picked it up and dialed the front desk.

"Hello, front desk, may I help you, Mr. Bass?" the peppy receptionist asked.

He grunted, trying to hide his trauma. "Room service, please."

….

A/N: Let me know what you think!!! =DDD I know this chapter was depressing, but I didn't just want it to be a fluff ending….though I wouldn't keep that too far from yours thoughts. I just wanted to make it a little more interesting. Hehe. Also, sorry that it's so short….I seem not to be able to do long chapters with this story, lol. But I will try to update soon. THANK-YOU FOR YOUR REVIEWS!!! KEEP IT UP!!! =D


	7. Fighting the Tears

A/N: Okay, so I started this whole schedule for when I was going to update my stories, but I just felt inspired to write another chapter this one tonight…I was feeling an angsty chapter coming on and this story seemed to fit that category. So yeah, this one may not end well…but please still read and review! I'll love you for it and definitely update more often. ;p

………

Ch. 7—Fighting the Tears

Three days. Three days since Blair and Marcus had really become official. Sure, they were dating before, but it was obvious to more than just the surrounding audience that she was just using him to get back at Chuck for what he had done to her. Then, the two had reunited, or it had seemed so, until Blair was caught locking lips with her Lord in the middle of Central Park.

After destroying his suite and trying multiple times to sleep with the hired sluts waltzing about The Palace, Chuck couldn't hide his feelings any more. He hadn't been able to sleep with any women since Blair had come back, what made him think it would be any different now. A part of him wanted to confront Blair and ask her what the heck happened in her process of 'thinking about it'. But the other part of him just wanted to be left in isolation forever.

He wanted to go back to his old life. Go back to a time when he wasn't attached to women, when Blair was Nate's and only mattered to him as his scheming buddy. But if he sat and thought long enough about it, he knew that wasn't true. Falling in love with Blair was both the best and the worst thing that had happened to him, and he wouldn't wish that away….not for all the happiness in the world, or at least the appearance of happiness.

He crossed the room, getting up from the couch and gulping down another glass of scotch. He was drinking more than usual and he refused to see anyone. Nate had tried talking to him, but with school starting in a week and a half, he was having enough problems of his own, problems Chuck no doubt thought had something to do with this 'Catherine'. Deep down Chuck wanted to help Nate, but he couldn't even help himself, so what good would it do to put up a façade in front of anyone else.

Nate hardly visited Chuck anyways. He did at first, but when Chuck stopped opening the door and actually started locking it, he took the hint and spent his days around the Van der Woodsens, because Serena was having the same trouble getting through to Blair.

The beautiful, bouncy brunette was just that….beautiful, bouncy and faking every single freaking emotion, so as to not cry every waking hour of every waking day. Serena knew she was hurting herself, but it seemed she was the only one aware of it. She had confided to Nate about it and he had done the same to her about Chuck, but it didn't really seem to help the situation. If Blair wanted to be with Marcus, Serena wasn't going to mess with that, especially when she couldn't get Blair to actually pour out what she was truly feeling since the day at the beach, when she had clearly proven her love, if not attraction towards Chuck.

It was all so surreal. Neither of them had seen Blair or Chuck is such a low mood. Though Blair's mood seemed to be much more up beat than Chuck's, who had refused to exit his suite since the day he opened his phone to find the love of his life kissing her 'prince charming'. He had also destroyed his phone that day…or tried to, at the very least he turned it off and hadn't turned it back on since. Not for three days.

Three days. It didn't really seem like the longest time in the world. But for these two star-crossed lovers it was an eternity. It had killed Chuck not to be with Blair all summer. He had regretted his decision to leave her in Tuscany the minute her plane had taken off. Maybe he could've gotten over her if he had never seen her again. He certainly did not have any problems performing for those two and a half months. He couldn't explain why suddenly every woman was hideous once he got the notice from Gossip Girl of Blair's return. Though, as time went by he began to realize that though he was perfectly able to perform all summer, he was never fully satisfied, which was why he always had three or more girls with him at all times. The line about him not feeling well was getting old fast, and the only reason his leagues of women constantly believed it was either because they were so ditzy and stupid or because he was Chuck Bass, and you just believed things that came from those sultry, seductive lips.

Whatever the case, it didn't matter anymore. He couldn't pretend and he had promised himself he wouldn't cry anymore after that first night. No matter how hurt he was or how much Blair mattered to him, he wouldn't bring himself to tears. Though it wasn't exactly like he had commanded them before. He sighed a lot now. He sighed more than before when he had hardly attempted winning Blair back. It was worse now, because he had had her…if only for a few moments, and those moments had been the highlights of his entire summer, and then he had lost her…because she was unsure. And now she was back in _his_ arms. The arms of a man who didn't understand Blair, who never would, because he thought she was a sweet, delicate little flower who wanted to "wait". Chuck would've laughed at the sound of those words spinning in his head, if he had not been so miserable that regardless of Lord what's his face's so inadequacy towards Blair, she was still with him and it had been HER choice.

As far as Serena and Dan were going, well, they WEREN'T going. They had tried and tried and tried some more, but as desperate as they were to be with each other, it was enough. And Dan had finally given up on her when he had caught Serena making out with Nate. It had been all a 'show' to make some chick jealous for Nate, but Dan hadn't bought it. After all, he hadn't been able to stop thinking about her all summer and when he was finally willing to give them another chance, she had fallen back into her old mistakes. She had taken offense to this, and that's when he realized there was no going back. He was convinced she was in love with Nate, though she denied every such accusation. But that was it for him. He was being too judgemental, as usual, but maybe it hurt too much to try again, but that was just the excuse he needed. Regardless, Serena's emotions had completely turned in towards Blair, to avoid her own downpour of tears, but of course these were replaced with tears for Blair. It seemed that whatever happened between all of these senior high schoolers, no one was completely happy, even if all the 'good guys' were trying to help constantly, like their lives depended on it.

…….

The last Saturday before school started up again. Blair was hosting her annual 'before school starts' party, except this time she was only inviting seniors and their parents, and her new royal boyfriend, of course.

She had made sure everything was perfect, as always. She never had a party that wasn't perfect, at least in the beginning. Over the course of the last year though, hardly anything had turned out as was planned. She sighed, looking at herself in the mirror. She had picked out the dress herself in France about a month ago. It was a golden yellow with one ruffled sleeve and a slight flare coming out after the waste. She smiled putting the matching headband in her hair with one swift movement. She applied some lipgloss, turned on her heels and headed downstairs to meet the first of her guests.

Serena had been in the room with her, had told her she looked beautiful, had spoken on how exciting senior year had been, but Blair had not heard any of it. Her mind was always racing these days. She had to keep up appearances. She had to make sure she always looked happy all the time, especially around Marcus. Luckily, he was not the brightest royal in the box, and if Blair had a smile on, fake or not, he was satisfied. He had showered her with gifts and kisses since their reuinion in the park, and Blair reveled in them, but only to his face directly. As soon as he was gone she would wipe his mark off her lips and reapply her makeup. She would then whisper discretely to Dorota to exchange his gifts for the NAME-BRANDS and also for things she would actually wear out in public. She couldn't entirely blame him, it wasn't like he had known her for that long, but if it had been Chuck….she stopped herself from thinking that sentence, resolving that….well, it would've just been different.

The party was in full swing, everyone was there, everyone that counted as anyone. Serena was found conversing with Nate in the corner. They nodded occasionally, and every so often let out a laugh so as to appear completely jovial and excited in the anticipation of the coming school year, but their actual conversation only always concerned chuck and blair lately. The laughter simply came from the ridiculousness of the situation.

Blair stood next to her doting boyfriend, who held her hand lovingly and on occasion would lean over and kiss her fingertips. To anyone watching, it would appear she was completely in love, that she fluttered at his touch…..but that was not the case. She shuddered at his touch. It was NOT Chuck's touch and if she ever fluttered when Marcus touched her, it was only because for an instant she had imagined Chuck acting it out, not this idiotic royal she had so devoted herself to.

Chuck knew better than to come to the party. He had been cooped up in his suite for at least a week, maybe two, it seemed that long and he honestly hadn't noticed the days going by. He only drank scotch, only sat on his couch, only ever thought of her. But something in his mind had triggered that there was a party that day, maybe because for all his idiocy, he hadn't thrown out his calendars, which he had cleverly marked down all 'Waldorf' events nearly a year ago, when he had begun to fall for her. He had done it that first night, after dropping her off at home. She had given her virginity to him, HIM! To Chuck Bass! And he wasn't going to lie, he was thrilled! His heart was pounding and that was the only thing he could do to contain himself. So, he wrote down all of the events she planned on hosting. Because Blair had planned out nearly every event up through senior year, and probably even happenings that might go on at Yale, knowing her.

And for some strange reason, Chuck had not destroyed the calendar. It wasn't as if she had ever touched it, and her picture definitely wasn't imprinted on it anywhere. He couldn't smell her, couldn't taste her, couldn't see her evidence anywhere on there…and he had made sure HER events blended in with all the others, though unfortunately for him, hers stood out. Anything about Blair Waldorf, would always stand out for him.

He showered, he dressed….a purplish color. Yes, Chuck Bass definitely did colors, of all kinds, and he made them look GOOD. When he arrived at the party, a shocked Nate nearly embraced him. The grin that spread across his face showed him that he was trying really hard to hold himself back.

"Chuck! You came man!" The shock and awe spread across his face long after the grin had faded away.

Chuck only nodded.

"What convinced you?" Nate asked, trying hard not to imply Blair as the reason to all things when it came to his best friend.

Chuck excused himself and said nothing more, but only moved on past him towards the bar, and the scotch.

Nate sighed, and Serena came up and wrapped her arm around him. "You tried," she said softly.

"God, I've never seen him this upset….over ANYTHING," Nate rubbed his hands across his forehead frustratingly.

Serena turned to see Blair laughing giddily with Penelope and Hazel. "She's faking it," she sighed.

Nate turned to her and hugged her, kissing the top of her head. They walked away and crossed the room…to another lonely corner.

………….

Chuck sat at the bar. He didn't remember the Waldorfs having a bar, but he was glad it was there now. He had taken in three glasses of scotch….to add to his ten he had consumed earlier in the day. Too bad the bartender wasn't a woman, though it wasn't like it would've helped him if he had been. He sighed and swirled his drink around before him. In the amber liquid all he could see was Blair. Blair at ten, Blair at fifteen, Blair at her birthday party last year, Blair in HIS freak of nature arms! He slammed the glass down and the bartender shook as the liquid flew out of his container.

Chuck got up from the bar, insulted at himself for making such a mess of things, not only referring to the spilled drink. He went back into the main party room and that's when he noticed it. She was staring at him. Blair Waldorf, in a sea of friends, linked with her new boytoy, was staring at HIM and crying.

……….

It blew his mind that no one noticed this. Even Nate and Serena pouting in the corner should've noticed something like this. He knew Blair better than anyone, and he could tell, even from this distance, that those were NOT happy tears, regardless of what she would be telling anyone, he was sure.

At that moment, he did not think, he did not even know what to say (not that that was usually a problem), he just stormed straight over there, grabbed Blair by her free arm and pulled her away. There was some hesitation on Marcus' part, but when he saw that his girlfriend was freely letting go of him, he decided it was not the biggest of issues. How NAÏVE he was. As far as the girls Blair had been chatting with moments before, they found themselves drawn to each other, oddly enough and the prospects of destroying the lives of many, young Brooklyn girls in the following months.

It was as if something had changed in the room. At least Nate and Serena had become aware. From the second Chuck fingers brushed against Blair's and he took her away from her circle of talkers, the two blondes in the corner had been glued to them, had been drawn to moving towards them, but had resisted. Chuck and Blair hadn't been this close in days, far be it for them to try and interrupt this.

………

From the moment they locked eyes, Blair could not stop the tears from flowing. Inside her head she was crying curses to him for even coming. He should've known, with their current situation, that he would be unwanted at her party. But she had not removed him from the guest list. He WAS a senior and it would make it all too obvious, if she specifically excluded from attending, even if he was her most recent ex-boyfriend.

Regardless of her raging emotions, she anticipated him coming forward to get her. The minute he approached her she lost her eye contact and simply looked down towards her hands fidgeting at her sides. Once he took them, she became visibly calm, though on the inside she was screaming. She had let him take her away from what she was trying so hard to convince herself she was now and her body yielded to his touch.

He had only meant to pull her away by a slight tug of her wrist, but the moment he approached her, he knew he was going to hold her hand. He took her wrist as he had planned on doing, and then fiercely began his climb up the stares. He wasn't rushing but he wasn't walking to slow either. He did lessen his pace when he felt her breathing speed up and he knew the following conversation wouldn't be easy, especially when he felt her fingers entwine in his own. It nearly killed him that she still felt so strongly for him and yet was persecuting herself being with this idiot.

Once in her bedroom, he left her standing by her bed as he went to shut the door. He locked it. Then, he turned to her. She had decided to sit down and was again looking at her hands, which had resolved to fidgeting once more. He could hear her tear-filled sighs escape her lips. He walked to her and got down on his knees, taking her hands in his own again. Her fidgeting stopped. He looked up to her, but she wouldn't return his gaze. He saw a single tear drift down her cheek, then another and there was nearly a flood before she realized her own actions and got up quickly. "No," she muttered.

"Yes," he said, standing up with her and then forcing her to sit down on her bed again as he took his place back at her feet.

Now she looked at him. His eyes were crying 'why' and she bit her lip softly, it was all she could do to stop more tears from rolling down her face.

"What happened?" he asked.

She opened her mouth, but nothing would come out.

"I…" she tried.

He waited.

"I…." she turned away from him.

His eyebrows narrowed. He let go of her hands and instantly she felt the cool air encircle her once warmed hands. He walked to the other side of her room, muttered something angrily, then turned back to look at her. She hadn't moved.

"Is this what 'I need to think' means?" he fumed. He wasn't trying to sound angry, but he HAD to know the answer and he had gone TOO long without it.

She sighed, feeling the tension, but getting a little bitter herself. "I had a lapse of judgement, Chuck," she emphasized his name.

He scoffed and watched her as she stood. "I'm always your 'lapse of judgement' aren't I?"

"Chuck!" she nearly yelled.

"Shh, your guests might hear you," he said sarcastically, pacing back and forth from his side of the room.

"Well at least I'll have a good reason to get you out of here then," she folded her arms.

"You want me to leave?! Gladly. I mean, it's not like this hasn't been my first breath of daylight since I got that awful picture streaming in from gossip girl!"

"Shh!" she said, grabbing his upper arms which were flailing about.

He pulled away. "God Blair, what do you want from me?!"

Her tears flew down her face again. "I don't know! Okay?! Just …just…."

"What?!"

She huffed. "Get out!" She cried. She couldn't handle all these very real emotions after a week of practically nothing. She fell to the ground.

His face twisted and for once he didn't know what to say. Normally he would've listened to her on instant, but seeing her piled heap on the floor, crying out for confusion and who knew? Maybe it was for him….this made him stay. He bent down and lifted her up from the floor. She was so weak, and so very willing for him to carry her to her bed.

He didn't know what to do anymore, what to say, but he could tell how very distressed she was.

"Do you want me to tell your guests to leave?" he asked, tenderly. There was not a single perverted strain in his voice and it pained Blair even more to recognize this. She had gone through so much agony in not choosing him and yet when she was face to face with him, he gave her every reason to go back on her decision.

She shook her head. "No, it won't change anything."

He nodded. He had lowered her onto her bed at least a minute or so ago, but her arms were still wrapped around his neck, and his face was still but a few inches from her own.

"It won't change anything," he repeated. Their eyes firmly locked. He could barely breathe. She could feel the oxygen escaping her lips, but she dared not bring it back, not when she was so close to something she feared she would never have.

Without taking his gaze from her own, he climbed on top of her from his position next to her and lowered his face to hers, capturing her lips in a tender kiss. Instantly her hands found her way to the hair grazing the edge of his neck, and she tugged. He pulled away for a moment and looked at her. Another tear fell, but he wiped away by leaning his head down and brushing it away with the side of his face. She groaned at his tender touch and real, happy, confused, stressed tears continued to flow down.

"Shh, it's okay…" he whispered.

This silenced her, and she was filled with such a fire. He could see it in her eyes and in one quick moment, she had flipped him on his back. Smirking with such persistence that he had never seen in her she leaned down and attacked his lips.

Then, the lights went out.

……………………………..

A/N: Hey all! Let me know what you think! This is a really LONG chapter! Lol. And you know, I really was just going to go with an angsty fight and that was it! I swear, I was not preparing this! Lol. XD Plus, I think this must be my longest chapter since the first chapter…haha, must be because I didn't go into dialouge right away. Lol. XD Ah well….I hope you loved it and please PLEASE review! =D


	8. Harder Than Imagined

A/N: Hey all, sorry it took me so long to get this out…but well, I've been insanely busy…and believe me, if I could update this everyday, I totally would. Thank-you, loyal readers who have kept up on this and I hope you review again and love this chapter! =D

*There is some sexual content in this fic…though it's like my first time attempting it, so if it majorly sucks…that's why. ;p I just figured…it was Chuck and Blair, it was going to be necessary soon enough. ;p

*SO YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!!!!

…………..

**Ch.8—Harder than Imagined**

Their panting became almost insync. She grabbed at him fiercely, trying to pull off his clothes as quickly as possible, but not quick enough for his taste. He guided her hands to the buttons at his collar and gently bit on her earlobe in the process. She nearly nearly lost her grip on him as a moan escaped her. He took the intiative and flipped her on her back. She opened her eyes for a moment and stared into his deep brown spheres.

"I love you," she whispered, pulling him in for a kiss.

His mind was going crazy. He searched her eyes for more of an answer, but they were already closed again. Her body had readily taken over the responses from him and she could harldy forge mumbled noises, let alone explain her declaration. _What did this mean? Were they together? Were they not? _Could he really enjoy this moment knowing it may be the last one?_ Yes_.

He leaned down and placed kisses across her collar bone, pushing the single sleeve off of her left shoulder and biting softly on the exposed skin. She gasped.

"Chuck," she spoke into the darkness, pulling him closer to her and allowing her hands to find the way to undoing the zipper on his pants. He found his own hands reaching underneath her dress and pulling down her the thin material seperating her from him. Wet. He tried to control himself, finding it nearly impossible to remain sane in the knowledge of how she so desperately wanted him and yet had pushed him away in the madness of it all. Their breathing quickened, becoming hitched as he reached his finger into her. She tightened around him. Her hands crawled madly across his back, ripping his shirt and vest and tossing it away from them, on the opposite side of the bed nearly in shreds. She screamed at the feel of him inside of her.

He paused for a second, pulling his finger out of her and putting it to his lips.

"Shh," he smirked, gazing into her beautiful eyes. That smirk. It consumed her. She panted.

"I didn't know you had it in you," he leaned down to kiss her.

She smiled. "You should know me better than that by now, Bass," she snickered into his ear, as she proceeded to bite the tender skin, pulling his lips to her as close as she could manage.

In the moment of silence, a few scattered screams and panicked guests were heard from downstairs. Though not instantly, Blair widened her eyes and released her hold on Chuck, pushing him away from her and onto the floor.

"Uh…" he mused, standing up his near naked self off the floor. "Hmmm…my clothes!" he noticed, looking down to where he had landed.

She went to the door and listened in. Then, she tried flipping on the light switch. Nothing. No light. Only darkness. She sighed, leaning against the wall to the right of the door. "Blackout."

………………….

"Quite convenient, don't you think?" Chuck strode over to her, placing his hands on her tiny waist.

She looked up at him, trying not to be taken in by him so easily. After a few seconds of his intense stare, he moved in to kiss her, but she forced herself to look away. He paused in his descent.

"Blair…"

"There are frightened guests downstairs."

He smirked. "I'm sure someone can take care of it," he traced his finger against her cheekbone, kissing every spot he allowed his fingers to touch.

Her eyes fluttered shut. She wouldn't look at him, but he still affected her. Still so very much.

He placed a hand on her shivering shoulder, and moved in to whisper into her ear. "I can make you warm, Blair." She was far from cold, especially since it was nearly 100 degrees outside, and the sudden loss of electricity allowed for the heat to seep in. But Chuck used anything to his advantage, and the appearance of cold was certainly working for him.

Her eyes rolled to the back of her head as he continued whispering things of the most sinister nature into her far from innocent ears. "Chuck," she forced out, pathetically. She turned to look at him and would not let the stare sink in, not as much as he wanted it to. She pushed him away.

"I have a party to host," and with that, she opened the door, pulling her sleeve back up, flying down the stairs and leaving him feeling empty, alone, and quite disappointed….once again, in her bedroom.

He bent down to pick up his shirt which had torn down the middle. He sighed. "I probably cannot fix this," he pondered, with a silly smirk on his face. "Oh Waldorf….what am I gonna do with you?" he muttered, sitting on her bed and feeling back on the spots where she had lied only moments earlier. He found her underwear beneath a few of the covers and sighed stupidly, clenching it within his fingertips.

He took in her scent. He could smell her everywhere. "You intoxicate me," he exhaled.

…………………………..

She seemed frazzled as she elegantly walked down the stairs, with a bit of jump in her step it seemed, at least before she reached the bottom step. Serena looked on from the back corner. She smirked. Blair's headband was falling out, her bra strap was showing and there were wrinkles in the skirt of her dress. _And where was Chuck? Nowhere to be seen_. She had to keep from falling into ecstatic laughter at the sight of her dissheveled friend.

Nate had been going crazy wondering what was going on, especially since he had lost Catherine in the dark. He thought that maybe asking Marcus would've been a bit much, especially since he was Blair's ex-boyfriend. Nate hadn't really told anybody, but he had started seeing Vanessa again, and there was a possibility she had appeared to the party. There was such a freedom with Vanessa, a freedom he hadn't felt since he had been with…his thoughts wandered as he turned to look at the blonde beauty in the corner. She was smiling at a figure on the staircase. He walked over to Serena, confused.

"What's—"

Serena pointed in Blair's direction. And Nate had to put a hand over his mouth to keep from laughing himself! "Does she know she looks like that?" he asked.

She let a laugh escape. "I don't think so," she said, shaking her head.

Nate looked around casually. "And where's Chuck?" he smirked.

Serena looked around as well, and the directed her attention back to Blair, who was attempting to push her sleeve up even further and occasionally looking back up towards the stairs.

"From the looks of it, it would appear in her bedroom."

Nate looked at her, wide-eyed, and muffled another laugh. "I…I'm speechless."

Serena nodded, but then her expression grew worried. "Yeah, and my guess is so will she if anyone really notices her like that," she pushed past Nate and through the crowd, dragging Blair into a deserted hallway. Nate just looked on after her, in complete amusement of the whole situation.

……………

"S, what are you doing?" Blair asked, confused at the blonde's actions.

She muffled a nervous laugh. "I would check out your appearance before you go making announcements to your guests," she pushed the brunette into the nearest bathroom.

There was a screech heard behind the closed door, and Serena had to muffle her laughter. "Don't worry B, I'll get some candles. Your guests will be calm soon," she nearly snickered.

Blair whimpered. "Th-thank-you," she crumbled to the bathroom floor.

…………….

Nate had every intention of going up and into Blair's room in order to inspect Chuck's current situation, however appauling it might be. On his way to the staircase, he could hear Serena beginning to hand out candles and by the time he was halfway up the stairs, nearly everybody had calmed down.

"Nate," he heard someone call his name.

He turned around. Catherine.

"Oh, there you are!" he smiled at her, however fake it might've been. "I've been looking all over for you," he said, careful not to make too much physical contact. The woman may have been paying for his family misfortunes, but he in no way was still attached to her.

She stepped up a couple of the stairs in order to close some of the space between them. "Do you want to go somewhere?" she asked, twisting her face into a suggestive grin.

He sighed, but forced a smile. "I actually am in the midst of doing something," he said, pointing up the stairs.

"Blair's room? That sounds great," she smiled, taking his hand and guiding him up the stairs, her pink flowing dress dancing around her.

Nate's mouth hung open in shock. This was NOT going as planned. "No no no, I don't think that's such a good idea," he tried pulling away from her.

"Please Nate, since when is not everything you suggest a good idea?" she asked, pulling at his cheek, and running her hand through his hair.

"I didn't suggest this…." He muttered, reluctantly following her up the stairs.

……………..

In the midst of the now calm guests, Marcus's eyes scanned the room. He couldn't find Blair. He hadn't seen her since early on in the party, and though he wasn't one to really be worried about where she could be, or who she would be with, when the blackout hit, he found himself instantly in fear of her safety.

"Blair?" he called out. Now that everyone had gone from frightened to calm, he thought for sure she would hear him. "Blair?" he called again. No response. He sighed, rubbing his temple furiously with his hands.

Just then, someone laid a hand across his shoulder blades. He spun around instantly.

"Blair!" he said, ecstatic, sweeping her into a hug. "Where were you?" he asked the smiling girl.

"Oh, just with some friends," she said merrily.

He shook his head at her, completely oblivious. "I was worried about you. Weren't you scared at the blackout? Or at least for your guests?"

Her mouth hung open, and for a few moments she could not form the words, she needed to speak. "I……"

He looked at her confused.

"She just got caught up in the moment," Serena said, jumping in and precisely the right moment. "didn't you, B?" she smiled at her, ever so grateful friend.

Blair laughed, a little nervously. "Yes! That's it," she turned back to Marcus, who seemed to be relieved that she had remembered. "I simply…didn't realize," she cleared her throat, knowing all decent conversation that might've come out of her mouth was long gone.

Serena noticed this, and started to pull her away. "If you don't mind, Marcus, I'd like to borrow Blair for just a few seconds," she smiled innocently at him.

He nodded politely and waved her off. "Of course, just don't stay away so long this time," he winked at Blair.

"Oh, I won't darling," she smiled gracefully at him. Yep. She had officially recovered from her vocabulary relapse.

Serena rolled her eyes, and pushed her behind one of the farther walls. "Okay, miss cutesy, what happened up there?"

Blair looked at her, blushed, but then shook her head in an instant. "I don't know what you're talking about, S."

Serena raised an eyebrow. "Oh really?" she crossed her arms across her chest. She had just gotten the REAL Blair back, and she wasn't going to lose her now.

"Mmmhmmm," she smiled, chumly.

"Where's Chuck, then?" a smirk appeared on her face.

Blair's eyes widened. "Why would I know where Chuck—"

She was cut off by a scream. Everyone turned to look as Mrs. Beaton scrambled down the stairs in a flurry. She grabbed on to Marcus' hand and made her way out the door, quite determined. Marcus looked at Blair helplessly.

"Some sick joke," she muttered to Blair on her way out.

"Mother, what's going on?" he kept on asking, but Catherine wouldn't answer.

"We're leaving," was all she said.

……………………….

Blair gaped after her boyfriend and his troubled boyfriend. The guests had wandered out into other rooms as her eyes zoomed in on the staircase, where a discouraged Nate was stumbling down.

"I told her it wasn't a good idea…." He muttered.

"Archibald!" she nearly screamed, stalking over to him and pushing him down, pointing a threatening to finger him as she spoke. "What did you do?!"

Serena ran over to her and pulled her away. "Blair, calm down," she said.

Blair forced herself away from the two. She glared at them, then turned to look up the stairs. "Chuck!"

Serena and Nate both turned to look at her, eyes raised and suspicions to the highest. She could sense it and turned to look at them once more, before going into her room. "I….uh…." she paused, trying to think of a decent excuse, "ugh!" she stomped off. "I'll explain to you later!" she shouted to her snickering counterparts.

………………………..

"Chuck!" she opened her door wildly and slammed it behind her.

"Waldorf," he said, leaning back casually on a chair in the middle of the room. He was still half-naked, with his clothes lying beside him. No wonder the woman was scared off. "I met that lovely mother-in-law to be of yours," he smirked. "She's a bitch."

Blair's face looked panic. She stalked towards him and began hitting him everywhere. When she realized he was practically enjoying it, she grabbed a pillow to hit him with instead, but he stopped her mid swing.

"Pillow fight? Why didn't you say so?" he smirked wildly, his eyes dancing at the mere sight of her.

She froze, completely furious yet unable to move.

"I believe you left these behind…." He opened up his hand to reveal her discarded underwear.

She gasped, dropping the pillow.

"Now," he said, walking over to the door and locking it. "Where were we?" he asked, walking back over to her.

"Nowhere," she fumed, pushing him towards the door.

"Aww come on, Blair, you know you'll always come back for more," he smirked.

She was infuriated, struggling hard to get to the door handle and unlock it, but his body stuck firmly in place. "Move, you Basshole!" she shouted, aggravated.

He chuckled, grabbing her hand and interlacing his fingers with her own. She struggled, but only for a few moments. She looked at their hands, and watched as he leaned down to kiss her every fingertip. She stared on, completely in awe of his tender touch. Then, he looked at her.

"I'll leave," he whispered. "But what was this exactly?" his eyes searched hers with such genuine concern.

She sighed, taking her hand back, her shoulders slumping forward. "I don't know," she shook her head, going to sit on the chair he had occupied only moments earlier.

He looked at her defeated form, instant dejavu taking over him. He walked to her. He reached out his hand for her. She looked at it questioningly, and then up at him.

"Dance with me," he said.

"Chuck…" she shook her head. Of all the things swimming around in her mind, did she REALLY have to be bothered with this?

"Don't think," he said, pulling her up by her forearms and placing his right hand on her waist. She naturally brought her hand to meet his shoulder and his other waiting hand. She looked at their position. He was half naked. She was confused and only recently looking appropriate. He was troubled. But it all washed away.

"There's no music," she whispered, almost afraid to request such a thing. After all, she was against the idea to begin with.

He cleared his throat. "who needs music?" he leaned his right cheek against her left. "You've got the beating of my heart." She exhaled, drawing herself closer to him.

They began to sway. He had opened the windows in her absence and the breeze drifted between them. The birds of night called through the skies. The moon shone brightly through her window. Blair took her arms and wrapped them around Chuck's sweaty neck. Her head remained ducked into his chest. His arms rested along her lower back. He hummed softly. It soothed her.

"What do you want Blair?" he asked exasperated, drawing circles against the soft fabric of her dress.

She sighed. A stray tear escaping her closed lids. "You."

……………………………

A/N: LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THOUGHT!!!!! I'LL TRY TO UPDATE SOON!!!!!! =D


	9. Fear of Acceptance

A/N: Yay!!! An update!!! I apologize for taking awhile, but IN MY DEFENSE, I am updating, one day short of a week, SO! That is good, right? Lol. XD Ah well…hope you love the update! ;D

*Some sexual content near the end, YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!!!!

………….

Ch.9—Fear of Acceptance

Their intertwined naked bodies lay twisted amongst the bed sheets, as Chuck tenderly twisted the hair of a sleeping Blair around his fingers. He smiled at her content facial expression, and the way that their breathing seemed to be the only sound for miles around. She moaned slightly in her sleep, but never stirred. He kissed her forehead softly and snuggled closer to her.

"I love you, Blair."

Her face turned to cradle deeper in the crook of his neck. A quiet moan escaped her lips, causing a gasp to come from Chuck. He was still so amazed at the little things about Blair he had so desperately lived without all summer, and of his own choosing too. He had never felt so guilty, and almost drowned in self pity in that very moment.

"Chuck," she yawned, opening her eyes, and reaching her hand up to touch his face, making sure he was still there.

He smiled, and the self-pity was gone. She looked so beautiful when she was looking at him with all that love in her eyes.

"You're still here," her ruby lips curved up in a grin that grew wider by the second.

He continued playing with her hair, as she traced the jaw line on his face. Her eyes fluttered close as he planted little butterfly kisses down her nose and along the side of her face. "Of course I'm still here," he whispered.

A tear flew down her face. "I'm sorry," she breathed.

His eyebrows furrowed, as he caught the tear from drifitng down her face any further. "For what?"

She exhaled, opening her eyes to look at him again. "I've been pushing you away," she paused, contemplating what to say next. "I shouldn't have."

He pursed his lips together, and brought her closer to him, drawing tiny circles on the small of her back with his fingers. She cried into him, feeling the need to cry, feeling the rush of emotions she felt with him. She wanted him. She loved him. She didn't want Marcus, never really had. "I understand," was all he said.

She pulled back to look at him. He looked into her wandering eyes as her mouth hung open, thinking about what words she should say, if she should be saying anything anymore. She looked to his lips and struggled to bring herself closer to them. He leaned his head in though, as if on cue, and they shared in a slowly soft, but passionate kiss.

……………

"You think they're going to come down anytime soon?" Nate asked, a zoning Serena on the staircase.

She yawned. "I wouldn't count on it. They've been up there awhile, and I don't think those cries of ecstasy were our imagination."

Nate cracked a grin. "Yeah," he shook his head. "God, who wuold've seen it coming?"

Serena looked at him.

"Chuck and Blair?" He should his head. "I certainly never did."

She nodded blissfully. "I was pretty much appauled the first time she admitted to sleeping with him," she chuckled.

"Which was when?" he asked.

"Oh you know, in preparation for Thanksgiving last year."

"Ah," he mused, "yeah, that wasn't a happy day for me."

She reached forward and grasped his shoulder tenderly. "I'm sorry, Nate," she said, looking at him sympathetically.

He looked to her hand on his shoulder and smiled. There was no awkwardness this time, because this time they were just friends, and he wasn't seeing her behind Blair's back.

"Something else on your mind?" she asked him, taking him out and away from his thoughts.

He shrugged. "I should probably find Vanessa," he said.

"That'll be a little hard, since we got everyone to leave over an hour ago, don't ya think?" she smiled at him. That sparkly glint in her eye.

He laughed. "Yeah, I know…Blair and Chuck better thank us for that," he huffed sarcastically.

"Oh, I'm sure they'll find some way to make it up to us," she added playfully.

The two looked at each other, and laughed. No matter what the topic was in their oh-so important conversations, it always came back to Chuck and Blair. It seemed they were the glue holding them together. Maybe, in some instances…they were.

………………….

Vanessa strolled slowly along the empty streets of Brooklynlater that night. She had contemplated going to the party, but she didn't like Blair Waldorf, and as crazy about Nate as she was, she decided maybe it was for the best if he kept secrets from her.

She laughed out loud at her ridiculous thoughts. She should've taken Rufus's advice and gone to see him. Maybe Nate would've had a good reason for dismissing her AGAIN then. It was too late to think about what those reasons might have been though.

She had missed him so much over the summer. Dan hadn't been much of a buddy, galavanting off with every girl he could get his hands on. He had become quite the womanizer, even if now he had calmed down. Vanessa should've known it was all in mourning over Serena. What had she done to get over Nate? Nothing. She'd sulked, tried to wash it away by being with Dan—MISSION FAILURE. Jenny was always busy with some fashion thing or other. She had been quite alone. All she could busy herself was dressing up the art gallery, or café or whatever it had become.

She pulled out her phone and dialed a familiar number.

"Vanessa?" Nate asked, on the other end.

"Y-yeah, it's me," she blushed, just at the mention of her name coming from that dreamy voice of his.

She could hear him scrambling around, and wondered if she had interrupted him or something.

"Is everything all right?" she asked.

"Yeah, everything's fine!" he said, a little too enthusiastically.

She giggled. "So, how was the big party? Any scandal involved?" she asked, playfully.

He paused, afraid to let her in on just how much scandal really was involved.

"What is it?" she asked, suddenly afraid of her own question. She could hear him sigh. Could almost imagine him brushing a hand through his own hair.

"Is something wrong?" she heard a girl ask him in the background. There was a long silence then. Vanessa was jealous instantly, but reassured herself it was nothing once she realized the voice was none other than Serena Van der Woodsen.

"Nate?" Vanessa asked.

"Uh," he couldn't speak, "I….I have to go. I…I'll…I have to go, I'm sorry."

**CLICK.**

Vanessa took her phone away from her ear and just stared at it, not knowing what to think or what to do even. She just stared, and after some time, stuffed it back in her purse. She turned to her right and noticed she was at the Humphrey Loft. She smiled softly. This place always felt like home.

………………….

"I just couldn't do it. I couldn't do it, Serena," Nate paced the foyer in the Waldorf penthouse.

She just watched him, almost terrified to speak, to advise anything. "You couldn't do what?" she asked, after minutes of contemplating. He still hadn't told her what had gone on in the phone call. All she knew was it was Vanessa, and Nate had been too unsure of himself to even politely finish the conversation.

He sighed and turned to her, walking across the room. "I couldn't tell her about Catherine."

Serena's eyebrows furrowed. She stood up, obviously finding this information a little unsettling. "What do you mean 'about Catherine'? I thought you ended things," she fumed.

He gulped. "I meant to, I did."

She looked at him, eyes still furious. "But?"

He started pacing again, but this time he had an angry Serena watching his every move, ever so furiously. It did not calm his nerves in the least.

"Nate?" she asked, stopping him mid-stride, and forcing him to face her.

He looked at her, scared to say anything, scared to do anything, just wanting to escape.

She wiped away her angry expression and replaced it with one of concern. "If you can't tell me, there's no way you're going to be able to tell Vanessa."

He nodded, knowing she was right. But silence still filled the room.

"If you want, we can go somewhere ELSE to talk about this?" she prodded. Then a smirk appeared on her face. "I mean, I don't think Blair and Chuck will be needing us anymore."

Nate laughed. "Yeah, they seem pretty capable."

They both exchanged another smile, and then headed for the elevator.

……………………………

The kisses grew in excitement, a fire they had not known for so long. That one passionate kiss had not been enough, for either of them. Blair cried out in pleasure as he entered her time and time again, her fingers digging into his back as he pushed further into her. Faster. Harder. Stronger. But it was never enough. She rose to meet him every time, and he reveled in the feel of her soft, sweaty skin against his own. She was so tight around him and it drove him mad to feel how desperately she needed him.

"Chuck…Chuck…Chuck!" she screamed, yet almost in a whisper, burying her face in his neck, biting softly on the skin of his shoulder.

He groaned as her teeth found her way up to his begging lips.

"Blai—" he was silenced by her mouth enclosing over his, tongues dancing in their exploration of each other's domains.

His hands groped her everywhere and she returned the favor, needing to touch every inch of him, every inch she had been unable to access all summer. This was heat, _screw the sun_, this would kill her.

Their moans grew louder, silence turning to screams, climax building, intensity rising, any closer and they would have been seen as one body, not two. Though perhaps they had always been.

**RING! RING! RING!**

The sound did not bother them, they continued, full force.

**RING! RING! RING!**

Blair turned to see her phone vibrating and ringing on her bedroom floor. She was aggravated, but she wasn't going to let it get to her. Besides, turning her head away had given Chuck full access to her neck, and she was intoxicated by his nibblings and husky breath on her skin.

**RING! RING! RING!**

"You have GOT to be kidding me," she nearly yelled, glaring at the phone.

He chuckled at her ridiculous temper tantrum. "Would you like me to get it for you?" he nuzzled his face in her frizzled locks.

She gasped at his closeness.

He smirked at his effect. "I'll be right back," he said, getting up and out of her and bending to pick up the phone.

She cringed as the cold air took over her, and felt so very uncomfortable with him not inside her. "Come back," she pleaded weakly.

He looked at her and smiled. "Always, I just--" he froze when he saw the screen on her phone.

"Chuck?" she asked, sitting up in the bed, and reaching for the sheets to cover herself.

He seemed frozen, like he couldn't look away. But then he walked towards her and set down the phone in her outstretched hand. She took it, looking at him suspiciously before looking at the phone herself. Her eyes widened and suddenly she knew why he had been so silent.

**1 NEW TEXT MESSAGE.**

** FROM: MARCUS**

…………………….

A/N: I tried to make this as long as I could without saying too much, and I don't really know if this is one of my best chapters…you'll just have to review and let me know! ;p THANKS MUCH! =D


	10. Riches and Loopholes

A/N: UPDATE!!!!!!! YAAAAAAAAAAY!!! Lol. XD Ok, but seriously…this is going to be my last update for a VERY long time. You see, I have tried juggling four CB fics, and found it nearly impossible. Lol. Plus, the most recent one I've started (So What If I'm Jealous) seems to be attracting the most viewers, SO! I am going to focus wholeheartedly on updating THAT one, and once that is finished, then I will move on to the other three….so, if this fic is your favorite out of…. 'Queen Bee for a Reason' and 'Never Again: A Chuck & Blair Story', then please go to my profile and vote for this one! And the minute I am done with 'So What if I'm Jealous', I will make it my mission to finish this one! *giggles* ;p

With that said, I figured it was only right to have ONE LAST CHAPTER before I abandon this story for awhile. ;p I'm having one last chapter for awhile for all three of these stories. I updated 'Never Again' just a few days ago, so if you haven't checked that one out, you most definitely should. ;p

*As always, I OWN NOTHING!!!!!!!!

Please read and review. =) (If you have trouble thinking of what to review…just tell me what your favorite parts were! A detailed review=a happy writer, willing to update more often. ;)

………………………….

Ch.10—Riches and Loopholes

"I'm sure it's nothing…" she said, her hands fidgeting just above the keys on her phone.

She could feel Chuck's hot, intense gaze looming over her face and her face turned a fiery red, like she was embarrassed. But why? And for what reason? She gulped, uncertainly and looked up at him flippantly.

"I mean, what does he really have to say?" she forced a choked laugh.

Chuck's expression never changed. He just kept looking at her. He was so serious, and nothing she said could shake the fear that was hidden under that determined stare of his.

"He's probably just apologizing for leaving so abruptly," she cleared her throat, allowing one of her fingers to loop under a stray brunette curl. She was rambling and she knew it, but something about that text scared her, made her unable to open it.

"Blair," Chuck warned.

She looked up at him now, completely frozen. He could see the fear in her eyes now. They both stayed in that place for what seemed like forever, but what only mere seconds.

"If you won't check it, I will," he said, crawling back over to her and reaching for the phone.

"No!" she said, pulling the phone away from him as he nestled himself on the other side of her.

She sighed when he had finally given up, and began to twist the phone in her grasp. He leaned down and planted a sweet kiss on her bare shoulder. He pulled the sheets up to cover their naked bodies, and set his head in the crook of his neck. She inhaled deeply, and a peaceful yet worried sigh released from her.

_What are you worried about, Blair? _

She could've asked herself that question a million times, but the answer scared her even more than answering the text itself. She wouldn't dare answer it.

"Check it," he whispered softly.

Her eyes flicked open, and for some odd reason or another, she could not remember why she had closed them to begin with. Perhaps to avoid the reality of the situation, or perhaps just to escape into those own dreaded thoughts of hers.

She took a deep breath, and flipped the phone over so it was facing her. She pressed the OPEN button, and revealed the message.

She gulped.

"What? What is it?" Chuck asked frantically. He knew that expression anywhere. Worry and Fear. Question was if those emotions were really needed. Was this just an overdone Waldorf meltdown? Or something to really be concerned with?

She sighed. "He wants to meet me," she said, never taking her eyes off the phone.

"Now?" he asked, demanding. His eyebrows furrowed in anger. _Who did this guy think he was?! He was only…oh right, Blair's boyfriend. Well, not for long. _He grumbled.

She nodded subtlely.

There was silence. Only their breathing filled the room. It was harsher than usual, quieter too somehow. But it certainly wasn't as pleasant as the erotic breathing that had come from them earlier.

"Well, I'd better go," she said, whipping off the sheets to climb out of bed, but he grabbed her by the arm.

"I'm coming with you," he said.

She looked at him like he was crazy. "Are you out of your mind?! Do you have any idea what kind of drama THAT would cause?" she huffed.

He let go of her, and sent her reeling a few steps. She glared at him, and he would've chuckled had the situation not been so entirely serious.

"I just…I want him to know what he's dealing with," Chuck said matter-of-factly.

Blair rolled her eyes, while slipping her underwear back on. "Right, cause the best approach is to meet my supposed boyfriend for some unnamed reason and drag YOU along with me," she spat.

His eyebrows furrowed. "Well, I just thought—" he was cut off.

"You thought wrong!" she glared at him. "What would I say? 'Oh hey sweetie, this is the guy I've been cheating on you with for the last few hours. Was there something you wanted to tell me?'"

"I didn't mean like that."

"Oh, what DID you mean then? Please, humor me," she said, latching the last hook on her bra and slipping her yellow dress back over her head.

He sighed, completely aggravated with her so NOT appreciated wit at the moment.

"I just thought…that maybe—" he was cut off again.

"Oh god," a hand went up to her face, as she slumped into the chair in the middle of the room. "I cheated!" she practically screeched, looking directly at him as if this was 'news'. She started wimpering, and his heart broke watching her. "I've never cheated on ANYONE before."

"Are there more than the three I know about?" his eyebrow rose, in an attempt to humor her.

Nope. Just a glare.

He cupped her face in his hand. "Look." She didn't. Just kept looking down. A stray tear escaped her and dribbled down the side of her face. He wiped it away gently.

"Look at me," he said, more demanding.

She slowly brought her eyes up to meet him, and exhaled softly.

"You didn't love him. You DON'T love him," he smiled slowly.

"Ugh! That doesn't make it any less wrong!" she huffed, getting up and away from him, starting to pace dramatically.

In an instant, Chuck was up, suddenly fully clothed and trying to console her, rather attempt to get her to stop moving. "blair….blair….blair!" he kept calling her name, pulling on her arm, whatever he could do to get her to settle down. And when he finally got her to stop, by standing abruptly in front of her, hands on her shoulders…she wouldn't look at him.

"Don't make me do this again," he said, knowingly.

She looked at him straight away this time, but he could see the tears pooling up in her eyes. "I…I told him I'd never do this again," she trembled with her words, stuttering the whole way.

He grew confused. "Do what exactly?" he asked, trying to sound as gentle as he could.

She scoffed, another tear dribbling down the side of her face and onto her neck. He was too intent on what she was trying to say to bother with keeping her skin completely dry for the time being.

"This!" she nearly screamed, gesturing to space between the two of them. "Us!"

Chuck stared suddenly so intensely at her.

She turned away from him, as his grip became loose. "I don't know how he found out…where I was going to be, or…w-why, but when you…you know, confessed your love by all those shops, well….when I ran after him, I-I told him I would never do THAT again, I would never kiss you, be with you, anything!" her head was shaking violently now, the tears spewing out, covering every inch of her face.

He jumped over to her, grabbing a hold of her and forcing her into his embrace, which she comfortably settled into as she continued with her meltdown.

"It was the only way he would be with me!" she sniffled.

He pulled her back now, wiping the tears tenderly away. "But you're with me now. None of that matters. You've changed your mind."

He was looking at her like she was his precious little angel, his beautiful priceless gem, but she couldn't look at him for more than a second. Couldn't believe it somehow. Or couldn't understand everything that had just happened. Couldn't think.

She found herself slinking back onto the bed, wiping away the new oncoming slaught of tears on her face.

"You're with me, Blair," he said, confidently, though there was a weakness in his voice that wondered if that was even the case anymore. She had been so certain, he had to. They had BOTH been SO certain, but…now?

"Am I?" she questioned, her voice so small as she looked up to him.

…………………………………..

"Vanessa, it's so good to see you!" Rufus exclaimed, when he saw the curly haired, sweet faced girl on the other side of the door. "I'm just getting home. I was actually just out on a date. Then, there was a blackout and so we went and checked on Jenny, and then…." He stopped his ramble midsentence when he saw how dejected Vanessa looked as she crumbled on the couch.

He suddenly stopped the ramped cooking activity he had found himself in the middle of, washed his hands clean and slowly walked over to her. "Is everything all right?"

She remained silent.

"Did you go to that party? Was Nate surprised?" he laughed heartily.

"No," she choked out.

He was silent.

"And you know, when I called him he was with Serena," she looked up at Rufus in a fury. Clearly, she was more jealous than she had wanted to admit.

"Serena?" he asked in question. "Well, I'm sure it means nothing…I mean, Dan and Serena just got back together, so…"

"They broke up," she stated. "A day or two ago, I think."

"A DAY or two ago?" Rufus was in shock. "Oh, good to know my son shares all these updates with me," he muttered.

She just shook her head. "And you know, I KNOW he had something he wanted to tell me, and he COULDN'T. Another lie," she scoffed.

"Vanessa," he reached out his hand to rub her shoulder in comfort.

She sighed, pulling herself together. "No, I know…I'm taking his actions too seriously," she threw her hands up in a wild, exasperated gesture.

He pulled back his hand, but looked on at her sympathetically. He remained silent.

"It's just…I missed him, a LOT this summer. Ya know?"

Rufus nodded accordingly.

"And suddenly, he wants us to work and he invites me to things and then uninvites me…he sounds excited to talk to me on the phone, and then he stutters nervously and refuses to tell me anything. I just….I…."

He cringed, watching her fall apart. It wasn't easy for him. She was like a daughter to him.

"If he didn't want to be with me," she held back her tears, "I wish he'd just say so."

Rufus was about to interject, when she stood up.

"Look, is Dan here?" she asked, looking at him again, completely wounded and broken.

He held his tongue and simply nodded. "He should be in his room."

"Thanks," she forced a smile, and turned away.

When she was almost there, he called out for her. "Vanessa."

She spun around, giving him her full attention, and quirked an eyebrow, forcing a smile.

He sighed. "It's going to be okay," he reassured her.

She just nodded again. "Goodnight, Rufus," she said, and walked into Dan's room.

"Yeah, that was GREAT advice," Rufus muttered mockingly to himself, as he continued cutting up the remaining produce items.

……………………….

"So this is where we sit? On the steps of your soon to be homeless home?" she asked, lightheartedly.

"Cute, Serena. Maybe while we're at it, we can discuss the impossibilities of your relationship with Dan?"

Serena looked away avoidingly. "So….what did you want to tell me?" she looked back at him, innocently.

He rolled his eyes and let out a long, exasperated sigh.

"That bad, huh?"

"It's just….everything is so…..BAD, you know?" he looked to her, capturing her gaze.

"Oh believe me, I KNOW," her eyes widened.

He smiled.

"So, what does this all have to do with Catherine somehow?" she peered at him, suspiciously.

He forced a laugh. "Well, she has coincidentally decided that if I….uh….offer my services…"

"Ew."

"that she um, will…pay….for the restoration of my home?" he added weakly.

Serena's mouth dropped open. "Oh my gosh, Nate, are you serious? You're prostituting yourself to save your family?" her voice rose a few pitches.

"Well, when you say it like that, it sounds so heroic," he remarked.

She smacked him playfully on his arm that hung over his bended knees, but then grew serious again. "But I mean, if you need help, like REALLY need help, this is NOT the place you should be going for—"

He cut her off with a swift move of his hand. "Save it, Serena."

Her eyebrows furrowed in concern.

"I know this isn't the best way," he sighed. "Chuck already offered to help, and I turned him down."

"Wha—why would you do that?" she asked, "he obviously was only trying to help!"

He chuckled. "Yeah, I know…I tend to overreact when he wants to do anything…friendly," he spat out.

Serena rolled her eyes. "Well, I don't blame you for that one, I guess. But he's always been such a good friend to you, I just…I don't understand why you wouldn't let—"

"It was a hasty, rash decision on my part, I agree. But there's no going back now. He's put the money away in a frozen account for six months."

Serena pursed her lips, and scooted herself closer to Nate. "Here," she opened her arms up to him.

He looked to her hesitatingly, but then sighed into a smile.

"Come here," she whispered, bringing him into a hug and holding tight. "We'll figure this one out, okay?"

He nodded after she had pulled away.

"Just…please," she let out a laugh, "quit with the prostitution."

He smirked. "Oh, but it's SO tempting, Serena!"

She swatted his arm again, then allowed herself to lean back onto his shoulder.

…………………………..

Blair arrived prim and proper at the Beaton's doorstep less than an hour later. It had taken an awfully gruesome fight with Chuck to get out of the house, but she had managed it. Feeling with Chuck, being with Chuck just made her world spin, and she could hardly imagine her life without him. But what kind of a girlfriend would she be, if she didn't come when her boyfriend called?

So, she had left the house with Chuck still waiting for her in her bedroom when she would return. Though she highlly doubted he would still be there when she got back. She had rendered him speechless, and not in the good way, but she just had to figure out what she really wanted, and who she really wanted to be with. Of course the answer screaming at her.

_Chuck! Chuck! Chuck! _

But she had to block that out, at least for the time being. Sure they had admitted things, had sex and been unable to let each other out of their sight, but…._oh who was she kidding? She was crazy about him! And he loved her. Chuck Bass was in love…with her! At the very least though, she owed Marcus an explanation. Maybe she wouldn't have to tell him about the cheating, maybe she could just solidly break up with him. Maybe._

She made another knock at the door, when suddenly it opened, the butler leering over her quite uncomfortably. She adjusted her dress, and straightened the bow a top of her head.

"Is Lord Marcus in?" she asked, politely.

He still glared at her, and it caused her to look at him disgustedly as he opened the door further to let her. Goodness knows she was muttering SEVERAL somethings under her breath as she waltzed into the gorgeous summer home.

"Lord Marcus is in," he drawled, "But I think the one who would be expecting you is Lady Catherine, NOT her son." He gestured to a door on the farther end of the anticipated hallway.

"STEP-son," Blair corrected, as she followed his leave. She opened the door in which she was directed to, and it was closed behind her as soon as she was inside.

The room was dead quiet, except for a few lit candles, and there Catherine sat calm and serenely on a distinguished sofa in the center of the room.

"Blair, how good of you to come," a rude undertone to her voice.

Blair scoffed, walking towards her and sitting opposite her, her heels clacking all the way. "Maybe it's just me," she began, "but isn't a little bit an invasion of privacy to steal your step-son's phone to text his girlfriend?" she raised an eyebrow.

"Please, Marcus asked me to," she set her teacup down on the end table beside her, relaxing it on a lily colored coaster.

"Really?" Blair asked, in disbelief.

"Yes," she continued nonchalantly. "He suspects you, and…that Charles character," her hand flew in the air casually.

Blair's eyes widened, but she recovered instantly. "Well, that's…that's…"

"Absolutely true," she nodded. "I understand you don't want him to know."

Her mouth hung open, in shock of how this conversation had gone. She adjusted herself uncomfortably on the couch she had settled in.

"Just like I wouldn't want the Duke to discover my new fondness for your ex, Nate," she said, leaning forward and staring directly at her with an extremely dangerous gaze.

Blair's mouth shut on instant. Whatever she had planned on saying wasn't going to come across as even remotely decent anymore.

"In any normal case, I would DESPISE Marcus's choice in girlfriends…for this very reason." She had leaned back, fiddling with the teacup that was now back in her grasp. But that dangerous gaze flicked back to Blair's scared eyes.

She gulped.

"But for you, I'm willing to make an exception," she smirked evily.

"Oh?" Blair nearly scoffed, but maintained herself, regarding the circumstances.

"Yes, you see…Marcus seems to have fallen pretty hard for you…."

She gulped again.

"And the LAST thing I want to do is break my dear step-son's heart," she paused, analyzing Blair's every move, " And I'm sure that's the LAST thing you want to do too, isn't it Blair?"

That PIERCING gaze. It would NOT leave her face. It would NOT leave her alone.

She nodded flippantly, trying to remain in control of the situation. FAILING MISERABLY.

"So!" Catherine clasped her hands together, after placing the teacup back on the lily coaster to her right. "You keep my secret, I'll keep yours. No one gets hurt." Her eyes narrowed.

Blair opened her mouth to protest, but Catherine stopped her.

"Wait," she held up her hand for silence. "Before you make your decision," she pulled out a big mahogany box from the top drawer of the table beside her. She opened it to reveal a beautifully jewel-decorated silver crown. She held it out for Blair to examine. "There are many perks to being Duchess," she watched as Blair took in the beauty of the exquisite accessory. "Marcus has never felt THIS seriously about a girl before. You have quite the potential to make it to the engaged or even married status with the dear boy." She crossed her arms across her lap.

Blair gulped again, taking the tiara and touching it tentatively.

"I suggest you don't mess it up," she said, crudely, getting up slowly and drifting to the opposite side of the room, teacup in hand.

Blair's eyes closed slowly, completely overwhelmed. She closed the box and placed it on the coffee table which sat between the two sofas. _What in the world was she going to do now?_

Just as she was prepared to get up and leave, Marcus strolled into the room, completely shocked by her appearance.

"Blair!" he said, surprised.

She looked up at him, and stood awkwardly. "Marcus!" she said.

He grabbed at her bent arms tenderly and pecked her on the cheek quickly. "Well, what a surprise! I wasn't even expecting you!"

"Yes," she smiled, weakly. "I realized," she muttered under her breath.

"I'm sorry about tonight, by the way. I didn't mean to leave so abruptly. I DO hope I didn't ruin your party," he apologized whole-heartedly.

Blair shook her head. "Oh no, nonsense. Believe me, I know what it's like to have a demanding mother," she sputtered, trying to hold herself together.

"Right," he smiled, "Well, did you need me for something…or was there something you needed to tell me? Something important?"

She knew what he was asking. He wanted her to confirm that his worries were false, untrue, that she HADN'T spent the evening sleeping with Chuck, confessing her love to Chuck, feeling safe in HIS embrace, not Marcus's. But she could not bring herself to say it. She had promised him…never again, and if she had to lie to him, she would.

"No," she said quickly. "Actually, I was just leaving."

He looked at her confused. "Oh, well, all right. I'll see you tomorrow, then?" he asked.

She nodded. "Of course," she smiled. Thanking the God above that Marcus had no idea when her smiles were forced and when they were not.

"Good," he took her hands in his own, and kissed the face of her knuckles, then turned away.

Blair sighed, relieved at his departure.

"Goodnight, Blair," Catherine said, looking intently at her when she started to leave.

Blair nodded in agreement, guilt sweeping over her. "Goodnight, Mrs. Beaton."

………………….

She couldn't cheat on Marcus. She just couldn't. Not anymore. Not even if her feelings for him were practically nothing compared to her feelings for Chuck. It didn't matter that Catherine's deal had suggested she could stay with Chuck as long as she told no one about Nate's particular predicament…she just couldn't cheat. Not anymore. But she HAD to keep the deal. She COULDN'T let Marcus know about tonight. That she had broken her promise. She didn't even want to know what Catherine had meant by 'then no one gets hurt'. She had no idea what that woman was capable of.

Blair shivered on her way down to her waiting car. It was at least ninety degrees, but the chills radiating through her body from Catherine's despicable stares had taken over her.

She climbed inside the car, looking up once more at the Beaton household. She would have to have yet ANOTHER very uncomfortable discussion with Chuck, and this one would NOT end well. After everything that had happened with Nate and Chuck and Serena and her parents, if she was STILL expecting her fairytale happy ending….perhaps she was hoping for too much.

…………………….

A/N: Really long chapter!!!!!!! Please review!!!!!! It's gonna be my last one for awhile. ;p

*REMEMBER TO VOTE ON MY PROFILE IF YOU'D LIKE THIS STORY TO BE MY NEXT FOCUS!!


	11. Improving Developments

A/N: Wow. I can't believe it took me so long to get around to updating this fic, but finally the day has come. XD I've outlined it and there are only going to be a few more chapters, maybe it'll be anti-climactic but hopefully not. Heheh. I just really want to get to my BoB preview fics finally. Heheh. Make sure to review! =D

*Thank-you SO so much for those of you who are still reading and reviewing after all this time. Heh. I hope you enjoy! =D

* * *

**Ch.11—Improving Developments**

On the way home, her head was spinning. A part of her hoped Chuck was pissed enough to leave, to finally give up on her. She didn't know if she could deal with the possible reality that he would still be there when she got home, that he would refuse to leave until they talked about what had happened.

"You're still here," she said neutrally, nearly jumping at the sight of him when she opened the door to her room. She was shocked, having convinced herself in the last ten minutes that he indeed wouldn't be there. She had accepted it, and now here he was, waiting for her, just as she'd feared. The realization of how she'd have to go about getting rid of him was very daunting to her. She knew she'd get emotionally involved, and she wanted to avoid that at all costs. The whole night had rattled her, making her want to just fall onto her bed and be whisked slowly off to sleep by the feel of Chuck's soft fingertips tracing the curves of her body.

"Of course I'm still here."

He said it like there had been no other real answer. She sighed, rubbing a hand across her face and collapsing onto the chair still centered in the middle of the room. She was turned away from him and hoped that when she next looked at her bed he would be gone.

"What happened?" he asked, trying not to jump into a jealous rage or interrogate the tired mess sitting before him. "Did you tell him?"

"No."

His eyebrows narrowed. _No?_

"Blair, I thought—"

"Chuck, why don't you just go home?" she suggested, no obvious emotion lacing her tone. She was quite skilled in acting fake, but the state she was in gave her doubts. She inwardly congratulated herself for coming across so demanding and non-caring. Her heart was bleeding.

He scoffed. "So that's it? You're just not going to tell me?" he scooted to the edge of the bed and walked over to where she sat. Her eyes finally flicked up to his. She said nothing, just stared. He held his breath, waiting for her next move. She sighed again and placed a lazy hand over her eyes.

"There's nothing here for you," she said. It may have been killing her to push him away again deep down, but in the long run it seemed that it would be safer keeping him out of the situation. It would be easier to follow Catherine's orders, or at least find a way around them, if she didn't have to arrange for another secret affair with Chuck. _She wouldn't do that to him again._ In hindsight, she could see how much it had tortured him.

She removed her hand from over her eyes and opened them. "Go home."

He blinked, his eyes unmoving from hers. He was not gaping. He was not insulting or making witty remarks. And he certainly was not trying to leap onto her in a final act of seduction to try and change her mind. He was analyzing her facial features, how she spoke and how she moved. It was very unnerving.

"No," he said, still scrutinizing her. Her head reared back a little.

"Excuse me?" she asked, her eyebrows rose. She didn't mean to take offense, but his constant disobedience was loosening her grip on the façade she had pasted firmly in place.

"No," he repeated, his hands slipping into the pockets of the pants he'd decided to pull on sometime during the lapse of time they'd been apart. "I'm not leaving without an explanation." She sighed, groaning.

"Please, Chuck, don't make this any harder than it has to be. And," she sighed, "learn another word," she muttered.

He scoffed but didn't move. His stubbornness finally got the better of him and she stood to her feet. She tried move past him to busy herself away from him, but he wouldn't let her leave the spot in front of him. His arms blocked any move she attempted to make and his heated gaze finally made her turn her eyes back to his.

"Let _go_," she demanded, her eyebrows narrowed. There was more than one meaning in what she said. He was not blinded by the implications.

"_No_."

She sighed harshly and struggled to get out of his grip again but was unsuccessful. Her shoulders slumped and he knew she was going to give in. She knew it too, and didn't even attempt another get away when he loosened his grip on her ever so slightly. Her eyes traveled back to his after their short retreat in her struggle. His eyes were so soft, penetrating right through her and it surprised her. There was an intensity in the light brown that made her want to lose herself. She knew she couldn't deny him now.

"Catherine's having an affair with Nate," she said. Chuck nodded slowly.

"We know this," he said, slightly confused that she had stated a known fact. She was silent for awhile longer and his eyebrows fused. "Where are you going with this, Blair?"

Her eyes had flicked away yet again, but as always seemed to happen ended up back in Chuck's searching gaze. "She doesn't want anyone to know, especially the Duke."

Chuck folded his arms across his chest. "What's the problem?"

Blair's eyes closed softly and he saw wetness seeping out from beneath her dark lashes. She shook her head and sniffled, her hands flying to her face. His hands immediately reached for her arms, his eyes pleading for her to tell him what so troubled her that she couldn't seem to say.

"She said Marcus is in love with me, and I shouldn't want to break his heart." Her eyes looked back into his. "I know she's got something on me, and until I figure that out, I don't think we can be together," she gasped, on the verge of breaking down just from saying it out loud. "I won't put you back into a secret affair again," she sobbed. "I _want_ people to know about us!" she nearly shrieked.

Chuck's eyes widened at her words and he immediately took her into his arms, stroking her hair as she cried into his shoulder. Their love confessions had been so very true and spoken in the most intimate of moments, but it wasn't until she burst into tears because she was afraid of losing him and their status that he really understood the depth of her love for him.

"They will," he said very quietly. He sighed against her neck and brought her closer to him. He didn't know what to say. He figured a pep talk on how no one tells Blair Waldorf what to do would not suit this particular moment. So, he just held her, soothing the best he could and trying desperately hard to find a solution. _He would not lose her again._

* * *

In the shadows of the Humphrey kitchen, Nate waited in silence for Vanessa's slim form to erupt from Dan's bedroom. Rufus stood still some feet away from him, taking a sip from his coffee mug every few minutes. It was very unnerving to the upper class teen, but he said nothing about it. It had taken some nerve in coming over to begin with, but Serena had told him it would be for the best for Vanessa to know if he cared about continuing his romantic relationship with her, or at the very least his reputation.

"Nate," she said in surprise, closing the colored door behind her as she emerged. A thin ray of dim light still peeked out from behind the nearly closed door. Rufus made himself scarce and Nate recalled later that he hadn't had the slightest idea where the older man had gone and how he had done it without either he or Vanessa noticing.

"Vanessa," he said, abruptly walking towards her. He clasped her hands in his quickly as if it were natural and drowned his pleading eyes in her confused facial features. If he did not have something of dire importance to share with her, it would have been hard to restrain quiet laughter.

"I need to…tell you what's going on," he sighed as he said it, watching as she crossed her arms across her chest and furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and curiosity. "Could we…" he gestured towards the door, "go somewhere?" he asked. She blinked a few times and he honestly thought she was going to refuse him, but then her face smoothed over and focused back in on him.

"Yeah, sure, just let me tell Dan I'm leaving," she smiled briefly before turning away. Nate nodded and turned to wait for her by the door. The fact that he did not hear a disapproving or discouraging tone coming from Dan's bedroom comforted him. It was at that exact moment he realized he did not know where Rufus had gone. The fact that Jenny was also not in the vicinity seemed strange to him and he poked fun at himself later for being so analytical about such nonsensical topics.

Vanessa's soft smirk made his heart skip a beat when he looked over at her in the midst of their walk. He was sure they were thinking the same thing. The walk reminded both of them of the night they first kissed, the night it all began.

"What was it you wanted to tell me?" she asked, her dark curls floating about her face as she turned to look at him. He chuckled softly to himself, quite nervously trying to word smoothly all that he had to say. He no doubt knew she was curious about the cause of his laughter, but he was glad she said nothing in that regard. He slowed his walk.

"The reason," he swallowed hard, "the reason I did not invite you to that party is because…" he ran a hand through his hair, wondering if it would be better to break it off with her completely, even when they'd only just started up again, than to be humiliated and driven into an early grave by her reaction and imprinting rejection. "…I've been involved in a…quite physical affair with a married woman over the summer."

Vanessa's eyes widened. "Oh."

"And she was there…with her son who may or may not still be dating Blair."

"Wow," her head turned back to gaze into the distant space in front of her. He said nothing, hoping she would say more so he'd have the courage to continue. "Is this…" she looked back to him. He could see the hurt transforming into tears in her eyes. Immediately he felt guilty and almost like a convicted murderer for causing such pain for the beautiful girl beside him. "…is this a cruel way of saying you don't want to be with me? Because you could have thought of a more tactful way to do this." She attempted a joking chuckled. He ignored it and his eyes widened.

"No, no, no," he insisted. Immediately he halted and placed a firm grip on one of her arms to stop her as well. "I want to be with you," he said, "I just…" he sighed, "I wanted to be honest with you first. There's more involved."

Her eyes penetrated his and he was afraid to look at her, but he could not find it in himself to turn away. "She's giving me money."

Vanessa's eyebrows rose straight to the top of her forehead. "You're _prostituting_ yourself?" she asked, aghast. He winced.

"Do you remember what I told you about my father?"

She pursed her lips, wondering how this related and prepared to bring up a storm of an argument if he was planning to switch subjects so readily. "What about it?" she asked, trying to put the element of _calm_ into her voice.

"I told Catherine about it," he braced himself. "I also told her about where my father is located, which, if the police find out…it will pretty much be all over for my family." He sighed, wrapping a hand around the back of his neck in clear display of his stress over the worsening course of events. His eyes finally flicked back to Vanessa's after having avoided her accusing gaze. Her eyes had softened and a bit of relief came to him, especially as her lips parted with his next words. " She's threatened to go to the police about where he is, if don't continue with said…" he cleared his throat, "activities."

Vanessa closed her eyes in anguish. "I think I get it," she said almost scornfully, but he could tell she was trying to get a reign on her buried emotions and appreciated her for that.

"Serena's suggested that we go to Chuck and Blair about this. And as much as I hate to admit it, I think they'd best know what to do. No one does manipulative deceit like Chuck and Blair." He attempted a chuckle, but Vanessa's flashing eyes stopped him.

"_Chuck_ and _Blair?_" she asked, disgusted by the suggestion, though not denying the truth in his words. He watched her steadily, waiting for another strike of venom, but in a moment her anger evaporated and she stepped closer to him, taking hold of his hands. His eyes searched hers desperately. She just smiled softly at him and he wished more than anything he could read her thoughts.

She squeezed his hands gently and her eyes shared the deepest concern and a flicker of hope. He didn't know where she could have possibly gotten it from, but his heart swelled at her acceptance and determination to help him. The flutters he'd felt in his stomach just before summer re-emerged.

"I think maybe I can handle that," she said playfully, swaying their hands between them. He smiled wildly and then bent his head down and kissed her.

* * *

It was so dark in her room. Chuck almost thought he was dreaming. So often during the summer he'd imagined lying wrapped up in Blair Waldorf instead of denying the pang of hurt and guilt he'd only created himself. Now it seemed they were in a bigger, more upsetting predicament than either could have come up by their own mistakes. He wanted to know the answers, but even the ideas spinning in his head did not seem completely bulletproof.

"What are you thinking?" Blair asked. Her voice jolted him out of his thoughts and he noticed for the first time that he had been stroking her arm softly as she lie almost asleep across his chest. He sighed, looking down at her.

"A way to get out of this."

She bit her lip, _probably trying to think of an idea herself_, he thought.

"You have no idea what she might have on you?" he asked, playing with her hair unconsciously. His fingers weaved in and out of her luxurious curls and it sent a wonderfully comforting thrill up her spine. She turned her head slightly to look at him more intently, head–on.

"No," she shook her head.

"She's bluffing," he said immediately as if it made perfect sense and he'd been stupid to assume otherwise or even contemplate a solution.

"What are you talking about?" she asked, suddenly sliding up to a sitting position beside him. "How could she be bluffing? She's clearly very close to our manipulative level…" she trailed off. He smirked briefly, admiring how she so nonchalantly referred to their opposition as still lower than the two of them.

"That only gives her all the more incentive to lie. She thinks you're an innocent little child dating her stepson." He smirked. "Why would she have any reason to think you could manipulate her? You said she even showed you a glittering tiara tonight in order to entice you?"

She nodded subtly. Her face was in a panic though and Chuck's smug smile dropped from his face at the sight of it. "What exactly happened up here earlier?" she asked him, her gaze slowly moving over to his darkened eyes. She sighed, immediately knowing the answer to the question.

"That's what she has against me, Chuck. She assumes I cheated on Marcus, and I did."

He watched her keenly, and in an effort to rid her heart of doubts, he opened his mouth to speak, only to be thwarted once again.

"It doesn't matter that Marcus didn't really mean much of anything to me. I have a reputation to uphold, and I am fiercely loyal. You _know_ this. Why…I mean, how….what do I—?"

He cut her off by pulling her against him again. He didn't know what to say, and even soothing her with soft circles on her back seemed unrewarding to either of them. Schemes usually came so easily but for some reason his mind was coming up blank. It was true that some ideas had been forming and the wheels had definitely been turning, but somehow they all ended up looking unsuccessful at the end. Telling Blair that it would "be all right" sounded like total crap to him, and he knew he wouldn't take that cheesy line if someone told it to him.

"Well, it's not like you got pregnant," he joked. Immediately she looked up at him and glared. He cursed himself inwardly. _Idiot._

"That's besides the point," she snapped, settling back down onto his chest. He found it comforting that she did not get up immediately and force him to leave for making light of such a serious and troubling ordeal. "We have to think of something, Chuck," she sighed. He nodded, agreeing – not that she could see it. Still, he felt like an idiot for being clueless on the whole situation.

"Well…" he began again, hoping he'd sound a little smoother this time around. "Obviously we have to get something on her, so she'll drop the charges…so to speak."

She scoffed. "_Obviously_."

He pursed his lips, deciding not to take offense. "You could have dinner with Marcus…" he suggested. She propped herself up on her elbow.

"What would that do?" she asked, concentrating hard on his expressions, almost as if she was trying to determine exactly what he was thinking.

"It would provide a distraction, give her the satisfaction that you're keeping up with your end of the deal and she can relax."

"Meaning?" she prodded, slightly irritated that she could not see where he was going with his "solution".

"Meaning, she'll sink back into whatever habits or…" he cleared his throat, "activities that might qualify for useful…blackmail."

Blair pursed her lips, seeming to consider the idea very seriously. Her eyes flicked back to his. "And if we discover nothing?" Chuck smirked.

"A woman like Catherine Beaton always wanders into forbidden territory when she thinks no one is watching." Blair rolled her eyes, wanting to smack that ridiculous smirk off his face.

"It certainly is plausible," she decided, lying back down, though not on him. He frowned. He thought the idea was quite remarkable, even if it wasn't his best. He also was not pleased in the least when her warmth wasn't lying thickly on him. He could already feel himself becoming chilled, even in the heat still circulating the room.

"Blair—"

"Stay with me," she blurted, turning her head suddenly to stare him straight in the face. "Just for the night?" she hoped she didn't sound insecure, but she couldn't help the waver that laced her words.

"Of course," he said, dazed by her frantic eyes. After a beat, he pulled a strong arm around her waist and felt the tension ease out of her as she allowed herself to be brought closer to him. The butterflies exploded inside him when he felt the skin on skin sensation in the wake of her sudden nearness. Her arm draped lightly over his waist and smoothed over the surface of his skin.

"I love you," she murmured, finally giving in to sleep. He kissed her softly, first on the forehead, then on the cheek and lips. She responded tiredly by pushing herself up to tuck her head just beneath his chin. "You don't have clothes here," she yawned, suddenly realizing they had school the next day, or perhaps the day following, she couldn't remember.

He smirked softly. "I think I do."

She was too tired to come up with a witty retort, but somewhere in her mind she recalled that he did have a secret stash in the depths of her closet. It reminded her just how close they were, and how unable to really get over him she would have been.

* * *

A/N: Okay, this chapter definitely took me too long and I am far from satisfied with the last scene, but hopefully I can pull it all together. It's been awhile since I've updated this story after all. Heh. Thanks again for those of you who are still reading this story. God bless you. XD Review! ;p


	12. Broken Exchange

A/N: Next chapter! ;p Please review if you read! Thanks again! =D

* * *

**Ch.12—Broken Exchange**

Chuck set down his coffee mug on the table, and wrapped his fingers tighter around Blair's waist. Blair was delicately plopping green grapes into her mouth and sipping at her orange juice. Both were oblivious to the two blondes in front of them who appeared incapable of hiding their true emotions. Both Nate and Serena smirked at the brunettes who looked very much in love and comfortable with each other.

Finally, the male brunette cleared his throat. "Nathaniel." The blonde's gaze quirked to his best friend's. "You said you came here to tell us something?" His inquiring gaze jolted Nate back to reality. He shot a quick look to Serena before gathering his thoughts and approaching Chuck with the topic at hand.

"I probably will regret this later…" he trailed off, his eyes sinking into a distant space beyond. "But," his eyes snapped back to Chuck and Blair's, the latter of which it seemed had finally gotten interested and pinned her eyes to his hesitant face. "I didn't think there was anywhere left to go."

Blair raised her eyebrows in offense. There was no way she was going to be used as a last resort. Chuck felt her tense in his arm and readjusted himself in his chair. "What you really mean is that you know no one who will assist you in a more sleek and perfect matter."

Nate blinked, confused, until his registered Blair's face which was on the brink of destruction…via possible fire from the eyes and smoke from the ears and nose. He gulped, briefly scared before he pulled himself together.

"Yes, of course," he said, "but I thought that was obvious."

Blair twitched, annoyed at his lack of fluid conversation, but was obviously relieved at his correction. "Well," she said, placing folded hands on the table. "I think we need to know what the problem is. You seemed desperate on the phone."

"So did you," Serena remarked, speaking up for the first time. Whether the smirk had come and gone, Blair had not noticed, but now she was fully aware of the smirk plastered thickly on her face. She blushed a full shade of pink because of it, quickly recovering so Chuck would not notice. Though no doubt he would be smirking as well if she allowed her slight embarrassment to be made known. It would take at least a good thirty seconds to overcome that humiliation.

"What's the issue?" Blair asked, sounding bored. Serena dropped her smirk and settled for a hidden pursed smile. It seemed her brunette friend had recovered rather quickly. Clearly the time had not come to poke fun at her inevitable choosing of Chuck over Marcus.

"Well, the two of you must know of my…" he cleared his throat, "summer _activities_." His eyes flashed to Chuck's; the two smirked. Blair scrunched up her nose in disgust and scoffed. Serena appeared to be trying her very best to ignore the pure amusement and enjoyment clear in his voice.

"We certainly do," Blair said, brushing past the crude comment and moving abruptly into a professional air. "Now is there something _else_? Or did you just come here to _gloat_."

Nate's head turned to her in an almost offense to what he considered a rude outburst. Chuck just turned to look at his girlfriend and smirked. Slowly he turned back to look at Nate, still smiling. Serena had an unnamable expression covering her face. She was clearly torn between offense, shock, annoyance at the predictability, and amusement.

Nate sighed, deciding to take a final turn towards the straightforward serious. His eyes sunk into the cluttered space of plates on the table. When he looked back up at Blair and Chuck, neither one or the other could deny the possibility of tears in his eyes. "She knows the location where my father is hiding out. I told her…in bed."

Serena sighed, drawing her hand to her crinkled forehead.

"She's threatened to go to the police about it if I don't stop sleeping with her."

Blair blinked. While Serena had grown frustrated and Chuck's lips had parted in sympathy, Blair, it seemed, was still caught up in his brief perversion on the matter itself.

"I don't see the problem," she said, turning towards Chuck momentarily, her silky curls flying about her shoulders. She looked back at Nate and crossed her arms across her chest before she could see the reaction Chuck had given her: bewilderment. "Just keep sleeping with her. You don't seem to have a problem with."

Serena's eyes zoomed in on her best friend, completely blown away. "B…"

"She was a summer fling, Blair," Nate cut Serena off. "And I'm back with Vanessa. I couldn't do that to her."

The brunette said nothing of how he didn't seem to feel the same way when he was dating _her_. She shrugged nonchalantly, clearly not caring what would or wouldn't become of Vanessa Abram's feelings and Nate's reputation.

"And she threatened to me. Doesn't it bother you in the _least_ that I basically have to do whatever she says or my family is in jeopardy?" he asked in disbelief. His voice had risen a bit and both Chuck and Serena seemed to realize it. If Blair had noticed the alteration, she did not show it. There was silence until she finally returned her restless gaze to Nate's helpless face. Her eyes softened.

"Yes, Nate, it does." Her voice was quiet and understanding. If the other three did not know her so well, they'd think she was a completely different person. With a quick look at Chuck, Blair turned her attention back to Nate and leaned forward in her chair with her forearms pressed to the empty space on the table in front of her. "In fact," her lips quirked up at the corner, "I believe we can combine both our dilemmas."

Both Nate and Serena's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. Blair looked back at Chuck whose arm was now draped lazily across her lower back. She held a silly smile on his face and he nodded at the thought that had almost simultaneous with hers, popped into his head. She turned back to Nate.

"Chuck and I aren't together," she said.

Now they were both confused.

"At least…no one outside this room can know we are."

Serena and Nate exchanged a mystified glance and looked back to the duo before them who sat smug as snails now cuddled into each other.

"Catherine's conning us all, Archibald," Blair said simply. Nate raised his eyebrows.

"Excuse m—?"

She interrupted him. "And I can think of no one better that would serve as the most delectable bait. You're prostituting yourself after all," she shrugged, "this should be easy."

Both Nate and Serena gaped.

* * *

"I can't believe you two are making him do this."

Chuck looked up, amused at his step-sister's complaint. It's not the first time she's voiced how tyrant-like he and Blair are being in the case of 'poor Nathaniel', but it's the first time he's decided to speak up about it. Unfortunately, and yet to his increasing delight, Blair beats him to it and takes the reins.

"We didn't make him do anything, S. We explained the plan and he willingly went along with it," she shrugged, "I don't think you should keep complaining about it. After all, we could have sent out you in his stead."

Serena's jaw dropped and Chuck smirked. He pondered at the time what perfect addition to Blair's statements he could have added, but he could not think of a one. Serena finally managed to close her mouth and recover from her best friend's bluntness.

"He didn't willingly do it, B," she said hesitantly, "you didn't give him any other option."

"It's not like he pulled out his cards and showed them to us, Sis," Chuck jumped in, analyzing his sister's facial expressions. He got only pure satisfaction from seeing face twist around in an effort to comeback herself. He saw the defeat only moments later when she sank back into her chair.

Blair's lips formed an angry pout no more than ten minutes later when moans and groans took over the static in their ear pieces. She saw Chuck's eyes fill with hunger and if she was not mistaken, his pants appeared to be tightening near the belt.

"Chuck," she said, demanding. "Chuck!" she said again, this time louder. Serena looked over from her spot by the window. "You're enjoying this too much," Blair said, her voice threatening undesirable punishment if he continued with said behavior.

"I'm a _guy_, Blair. What do you _expect_?"

Serena rolled her eyes and turned back to looking out the window. It was another trivial quarrel between the two, one she was sure would end up in rough sex she hoped she wasn't still around for.

"I'm your _girlfriend_. I _expect_ that you get turned on by me and not hearing the foreplay of your best friend and his married sex partner from the summer!" She stood to her feet, outraged. He followed suit.

"You are _not_ my _girlfriend_," he said, his voice low and dangerous as he pointed an accusing finger at her. She recoiled, burning with hurt, even if was just stating the fabrication to emphasize it to Serena who still stood across the room. "And I _do_ get turned on by you," he said, slipping his hands into his pockets casually. His almost angry, narrowed eyebrows smoothed out into his now nonchalant facial expression. Blair clearly was not so quick to recover. She ripped the small listening device out of her ear and strode towards the door.

Chuck sighed, irritated with her. "Blair…" he trailed off.

"I should go see Marcus."

His eyes narrowed again.

"I'm sure he won't mind an early lunch," she said cheerily, slamming the door behind her. She didn't so much as acknowledge her best friend's existence on her way out. But soon after Blair had left, Serena's eyes met Chuck's.

"What?" he asked, defensive as if she'd just accused him.

"Nothing," she said, shaking her head, and noticing all too briefly that Chuck no longer appeared to be turned on. As far as she was aware the moans had not stopped emanating from the small ear buds. Chuck moved back to the table he had recently risen from and quickly jotted down some more notes from what he could hear. It was clear, from what Serena could tell, that the interactions between Nate and Mrs. Beaton were coming to a close.

The blonde bided her time but eventually settled herself with a reasonable conversation topic, deciding to remain a safe distance from the argument that had just taken place between the two brunettes.

"Chuck," she began. His eyes flared to her in anger, but cooled down almost immediately when he realized she was not attacking him directly.

"What?" he asked, trying to slip back into his casual self unsuccessfully.

"Don't you think…" she took a few steps towards him, "that this is coming awfully close to Nate cheating on Vanessa?" she looked at him with worried eyes. He watched her, analyzing the ways in which her features moved, as if trying to find a hidden meaning in her words.

"He's not sleeping with her, with Catherine I mean. Otherwise the little microphone I'd placed in his shirt pocket would have turned into static and remained in that state since he'd met up with her."

"Not even kissing though?" she asked.

He shrugged. "If he has his intention was not to enjoy it, only to get answers."

Serena folded her arms across her chest. "Doesn't that argument validate him sleeping with her as well?" she quirked an eyebrow.

Chuck smirked for a moment, but then dropped it and focused back in on her face. "No," he said, insistent, "like I said, that would require removing his clothing, and that would ruin the whole experiment entirely."

Serena's face contorted into suspicion. "Technically," she said, walking slowly towards the opposite wall, "removal of clothes wouldn't be necessary, especially not of shirt. Just the unzipping of pants would be enough," she said, a thin smile pasted firmly on her face. Chuck knew she was not pleased with the conclusion she'd made, but he smirked nonetheless.

"I wouldn't expect such _vulgar_ thoughts to come out of your mouth, Sis." He stood to his feet and walked towards her. She almost looked threatened and in a need to retreat or escape, but she kept her eyes glued to his and her spot unmoved.

"Well?" she asked, ignoring his amused state. He continued to smirk. It bothered her.

"While you are right in your conclusions, I do not believe Nate would go to such lengths just to get a lay, especially when that was not in the plan at all, and unlike myself, he tends not to break the rules." He turned back towards the table where his notes lay scattered. "Except with you, of course," he said offhandedly. Serena twitched and spotted her purse across the room. She grabbed it and moved towards the door.

"I'm going for a walk," she huffed, opening and closing the door behind her in a rush. Chuck said nothing to the statement or the sound, but a shudder ran through him at the repeat action that reminded him of Blair and the now guilt he felt over the prior transaction.

Serena wandered aimlessly down the streets of Manhattan until the sight of a familiar figure stopped her dead in her tracks. Her appearance seemed to have the same effect on him. She suddenly felt it incredibly hard to move or even breathe.

"Dan," she said finally.

He swallowed hard. "Serena."

* * *

A/N: Yay! I have completed it! =D I am proud. *nods* lol. I know this fic is mainly CB, but I did have kind of hints of some sort of drama happening between NV & DS, and I thought it would only be right to explore those venues a little bit. Heh. Review! =D


	13. Broken Hearted Illusions

A/N: One chapter left after this. Hope that excites you! lol. Please review. I shall try to have that final chapter up in the next few days, and then I can finally start up a brand-new story! =D

* * *

**Ch.13 – Broken Hearted Illusions **

Her feet slid slowly across the carpeted floor. She had not expected to run into Dan outside _The Palace_. She had not expected to share such a heartbreaking, drenched in tears conversation either, but it seemed that had been the very essence of them since the whole mess with Georgina earlier that spring. Every single memory from that experience came flooding back to her whenever she saw Dan. It didn't matter where it was. The horrifying memories almost blocked out the good times, but she knew it hadn't. If it had, she'd be able to let go by now.

Regardless of her troubled thoughts, her entire focus shifted irreversibly when she opened the door of 1812 and saw Blair Waldorf crumbled on the floor, her face flooded with tears.

"B, what happened?" she asked frantically, racing towards her and holding the fragile beauty in her arms. She was shaking and even the soothing motions Serena made by the smoothing back of Blair's hair and the soft rubbing on her chilled arms did not seem to help. Finally she pulled Blair back and cupped her face with her hands, forcing the sniffling girl to look at her.

"B…?" she prodded gently. It took a few more moments but Blair found Serena's searching eyes and sighed somewhat contently at her presence.

"Marcus has been cheating on me with Catherine."

Serena jolted back, her hands sliding off of Blair's face. A part of her wondered why Blair was crying so intensely over this. She had been cheating on Marcus as well…with Chuck. This would equal the playing fields and maybe make the official break-up not as much of a guilt-trip for her. At the same time, Serena could see very well the cause for her tears. There wasn't a single boyfriend she'd had that hadn't cheated on her. This was number three. It was as if her loyalty was never going to pay off. Serena sighed and curled a few strands of the brunette's silky locks behind her ear.

"Where's Chuck?" she asked. Blair sighed again.

"He went after him," she shook her head, clearly trying to pose the idea ridiculous. Serena was convinced she even thought it herself. There was an undertone of a sort of stupidity she felt for what Chuck had obviously done. _Another argument._ She sighed. _Apparently make-up sex had not taken place yet. _"He's such an _idiot_," Blair huffed weakly, rubbing at her eyes. A small smirk lit up Serena's face. _And there it is._

"Well, he doesn't usually beat up…guys…" she trailed off.

"Try people, _period_," Blair rolled her eyes. Serena sighed and pulled her best friend up from her seat on the cold floor and led her over to the couch. She headed for the small kitchenette and filled up some water in an empty crystalline glass. Once Blair had sipped nearly half the glass, Serena pulled it away and set it on a flat surface behind them.

"What happened, B?" she asked again. When I left the two of you were fighting. You left…in a fury, as I recall. Then I come back to see you crying on the floor for a completely different reason?"

Blair sighed loudly, contemplating whether or not she should tell Serena the entire story. It had been so exhausting to live through and was even more exhausting to remember and deal with. A shortened series of events with just the "high" points would suffice.

_She hadn't lasted twenty minutes until she found herself back at Chuck's suite, opening his door, and finding his rigid form faced towards the opposite wall. He seemed very intent on what he was listening to, pressing the small white device closer into his ear and taking quite detailed, fast-paced notes. He stilled when he heard the door open and close._

_ "Serena?" he asked, without turning to look. It was then that Blair noticed Serena was no longer there. She frowned momentarily, wondering what had become of her. Panic consumed her temporarily when the thought that she might be out looking for her surfaced. She dismissed it._

_ "No Chuck," she said, leaning back against the door. Chuck swallowed hard, pulled the little device out of his ear and stood up, turning around._

_ "Blair," he said, trying to pose a nonchalant air, but she could tell, however briefly, that he was feeling guilty. "Come to apologize?"_

_ Her eyebrows narrowed. "No," she glowered, stepping towards him. Her preconception about him actually feeling guilty vanished. He clearly was not sorry. "I thought I'd assist you in your apology by nixing the task of finding me."_

_ He smiled humorlessly. "You wasted your time then," he said, sitting back down again and slipping the small bud back in his ear. "I did nothing wrong," he said defensively, like he had been accused from taking the last sucker from the candy jar. _

_ She rolled her eyes and paced a little. Stopping and leaning against a distant counter, she folded her arms across her chest. "You could have been less obvious…"_

_ His eyes flicked up to hers and his hand abandoned the notepad again. He saw the hidden hurt in her eyes and comprehended immediately how she hadn't been a strict bitch of a girlfriend before, just one that was afraid of getting hurt. _

_ He stared at her, growing quite uncomfortable in his chair. He might have imagined it, but he swore at the time she was near tears. He had put her through an awful lot of trauma that year, and whether this incident should have happened or not, the least he could do was write away any future worries she might have, primarily infidelity. _

_ "Where's Serena?" she asked, convinced he was not going to speak more on the subject. He looked down, cursing himself for letting her go so long in silence. He stood to his feet and walked over to her, gripping her forearms as they lay tensed across her chest._

_ "I'm not going to cheat on you Blair."_

_ She blinked, finding herself speechless._

_ "I'm a guy, and believe me, we get turned on a lot. It's the key reason we get into porn at such a young age," he smirked cheekily, cheering inwardly when he saw the hint of a smile flash across her face. "But I spent all summer without you, unable to perform whatever I would have done without issue before I got those cursed butterflies. So, believe me when I tell you I get turned on by you, because I do, more than anything else. Just…try to not harp on me too bad for things I…can't necessarily control all the time."_

_ She rolled her eyes playfully, more hints of a smile dizzying his gaze. Her lips parted to speak when raised voices were heard on the little ear bud. Both Chuck and Blair's eyes widened and they snatched up the little ear buds, listening in. Blair sunk into a chair, tears starting to tumble down her face. Chuck's fingers clenched painfully into the hard back of his own chair. If she had been particularly observant right then, she would have noticed a slight growl on his end. But she did not._

_ "H-He…cheated on me," she said, breathless. _

_ "I'm going to kill him."_

_ In a flurry he was gone. She hadn't even really heard the words he had said, too swept up in her own thoughts. Her conversation with Chuck almost seemed nonexistent. She could not stop crying._

"Catherine told Nate that she had been sleeping with Marcus and Chuck went off to…do something about it?" she shrugged. "I don't know. I wasn't paying much attention, crying too much," she shrugged, trying to laugh it off by dabbing at her now dry cheeks with the crinkled Kleenex Serena had gotten for her.

Serena's facial expression said it all. She was still confused. The simple sentence had only cleared up half the issue. "So, did you guys make up? Like, from before? About his…" she cleared her throat, wondering how she word what he had done in case there had been no reconciliation. She didn't want to stir the fires.

Blair sighed. "I…uh, I don't know, I think so." Her gaze traveled throughout the room lazily. Serena shook her head, not trying anymore. She rose to her feet.

"I'm going to call Nate," she said. "He's…not with her anymore, is he?" she asked hesitantly. Blair sighed again, leaning back into the couch.

"I don't know…" she seemed in a complete daze. Serena pursed her lips and walked away a few feet to call Nate. Blair was clearly going to be of no more help.

"Nate? Hi. I need you to find Marcus, or…maybe Chuck. One of them. Probably Chuck. They'll be…together soon I think." Her eyebrows furrowed, confused with her own language.

"What are you talking about, Serena?" he asked, his voice hushed in a whisper. He had obviously not stopped visiting with Catherine and had just excused himself momentarily.

"Just do it!"

Her phone clicked shut before he got another word in and she sighed again as she turned back around to look at Blair. _Still a mess._ She sidled up next to her and held her in her dazed state. She was tensed but Blair didn't notice, hardly said a word, just gripped her best friend's arm like her life depended on it.

_Chuck's different_, she wanted to say, but words seemed too out of touch for Blair Waldorf.

* * *

"You shouldn't have stopped me."

Nate rolled his eyes and picked up the glass of scotch in front of him, taking a tiny sip and setting back down on the table. He had responded to Chuck's groaning and complaining in silence for over forty-five minutes. The few times he had responded decent enough, it didn't please Chuck and he was beginning to grow tired of it. The only reason he was still there was because Serena wouldn't have been able to hold Chuck back if he had tried to escape again.

"Why don't you tell me the next step in this…plan of yours," Nate suggested, gesturing about with his hand. Chuck's twitching eye looked up and glared at him. "Again," he sighed. Chuck pursed his lips, _holding back some angry words_, Nate was sure, and then reached for the notes that lie just to the left of him.

"Blair is having lunch with Marcus. She's going to try and get something out of him, inform him of what she knows, so to speak, and see what he does."

His brows furrowed. "What will that do?"

He sighed testily. "It will give us ammunition. If he admits to it, it means we can catch them in the act and have them sent packing, if he denies it, depending on how he does it, it means Catherine is bluffing, and thus may be bluffing in whatever she thinks she has on Blair. She may not even know that…Blair and I have been…" he cleared his throat, trailing off.

Nate nodded, losing focus as his gaze rested on an empty, blank spot on the other side of the room. Clearly Chuck was not going to divulge in the personal state he had fallen into with Blair. Nate wasn't an idiot. He could tell when something wasn't right, and for the last three months it had had something to do with Blair.

"You weren't crying before you got here, were you?"

Blair blinked, looking up at his forlorn features. She shook her head, laughter flooding through her pretty pink lips. "Of course not, silly. And if I was, it was only in excitement," she said, still smiling like her life depended on it.

She cursed herself inwardly for not waiting just a little bit longer to track Marcus down and have lunch with him. Truth be told, she hadn't really had a choice. Nate could only hold Chuck back for so long. Marcus needed to be distracted with something…namely _her_.

"I've never heard of anyone crying in excitement. Maybe in happiness over something that had just happened, but excitement for something to come?"

She giggled relentlessly until she realized he was being serious. She cleared her throat, signaled for another glass of water to the waiter who brought it and placed it next to her other full glass of water. Marcus looked at the two suspiciously but said nothing.

"Are you all right?" he asked, reaching across the table to hold her fingers in his hand.

"Yes, of course," she smiled softly, less fake appearing, as she allowed his hands to caress her. A frown abruptly replaced the care and concern on his face. It suddenly seemed to him that she was agitated and her purse was overly full.

"You sounded a little urgent on the phone," he began, "was there something you wanted to tell me?" he asked, tensing up.

She nodded once. "It's nothing much really." She reached into her purse and flipped through the few notes that she'd briefly taken before promptly arriving at the lunch she'd demanded promptly. "Just a few questions, some observations I've made…that I'd like to talk to you about."

He gulped, his fingers stilled on hers. She looked up at him and saw a brief horror flash across his face.

"What is it?" he asked.

She leaned forward on her crossed forearms and bitch-mode plastered onto her face. "Let me make one thing clear, _Marcus_. I don't take well to being cheated on."

His face fell, leaving him white as a ghost. He suddenly found it very difficult to speak. A million defenses were running through his mind, but he knew it would only come out in gibberish, so he kept his lips sealed and his eyes pinned on Blair's.

"Your step-mother? Really?" she looked at him skeptically.

He wished relief would suddenly flood across his face and that the whole ordeal could be insisted on as a misunderstanding. He really cared about Blair, and he didn't want to lose her. Temptation was just always too close.

"Also," she glanced at another note, a sick smile slithering onto her lips. "I thought you'd like to know that Nate Archibald, an old ex and friend of mine, is also screwing your mother." She cleared her throat mockingly and stood to her feet.

"Blair—" he looked up to her desperately, panicking. For the first time since she'd lowered her voice to accusatory he found himself able to speak.

"Oh, excuse me, step-mother." She rolled her eyes, moving to walk away.

"Blair, wait," he stood to his feet in a hurry and reached her just as she exited the restaurant. The waiter looked after them disappointingly, but decided it was best not to call after them until they were out of sight. Both were rich and he convinced himself they had simply forgotten to pay in the heat of the moment.

"Are you _sure_ she's been sleeping with Nate?" he asked.

She blinked. _Was he serious?_

"She's been caught in the act, Marcus." Her gaze flitted away from his. His silence was beginning to annoy her and she turned away again.

"Wait!" he said, pulling her back to him with a rough tug on her arm. She looked irritated by his so very ungentlemanly tactics but decided to push it aside for the time being. She looked up to him in impatient wait. "Who caught her?"

She scoffed. "And here I thought you'd actually feel bad about cheating on me."

He said nothing, though his renewed pale face was hard to ignore. He clearly forgot his true responsibilities and duties amidst the clear seduction of Mrs. Beaton.

"Nate!" she nearly shrieked, very much desiring to hit Marcus on the head with a hammer. "He's been bragging to us about it all summer!"

He looked very much confused and she rolled her eyes. "Us as in me, Serena, and Chuck." She was afraid for a moment that he would pick up on the mention of Chuck and connect her with him but he still seemed too swept up in the notion that his stepmother was "cheating on him" with one of his girlfriend's friends/exes. She shook her head. It was too twisted a concept and made her head hurt.

"Good-bye, Marcus."

She left him standing there and walked off to the limo waiting for her, sliding inside it instantly. He watched as it sped off and then abruptly panicked some five minutes later as the realization hit him again that he actually did feel bad for betraying Blair so awfully when she'd agreed so readily to be loyal to him after her slip with Chuck in the park.

He didn't get very far though. A sharp poke on his left shoulder jolted him from his thoughts and he turned to look at the too-skinny, jet black-haired waiter standing expectantly before him with a scribbled paper in his hand which he held out to him.

"Your bill, Sir."

* * *

No one knew where Serena had disappeared to the rest of the afternoon. Nate was curious, maybe even concerned, but said nothing. If Chuck and Blair were alarmed in the least, they did not show it. It was impossible to see if the two were still fighting or even spot signs of a successful make-up. They were both too focused on the mission at hand.

"You sure you're up to this?" he asked, seeing as Chuck would not do the honors. He hadn't been out of the loop enough to miss the explosion of tears Blair had fallen into almost on the spot.

She said nothing at first, almost as if she had not heard him.

"Blair," he said, slowing down. Serena was already walking pretty slow and Chuck was nothing if not a lazy walker, so the speed did not mean much but Blair's warning signals went off immediately.

"I'm fine," she retorted quickly. "Don't worry about it, Nate."

He watched her steadily but she blew out a huff and grabbed Chuck's hand, charging forward. Chuck seemed shocked by the simple act but went along with it as he often did with Blair's bizarre actions when Nate and Blair were still dating. It was almost surreal_._ Nate looked over at Serena who seemed in a dizzying haze, hardly the person he had heard on the phone earlier. He sighed and lightly touched the small of her back with his hand in order to encourage faster walking.

"Come on," he said softly, "if we don't hurry they'll be in and out of there before we reach the front door." Serena smiled.

"That might not be so mad," she muttered. Nate smirked but the two sped up nonetheless.

The plan was somehow to get inside the Beaton's summer house and catch Marcus and Catherine in the act. Blair had been confident it was inevitable. Marcus had been more thrown off by his stepmother/lover sleeping with another man other than his father and himself than he was with the fact that he'd cheated on his girlfriend he supposedly adored. Blair reflected that she hadn't technically said the words breaking it off with Marcus, but the conversation was close enough and she wouldn't spend any more time having a conversation of meaning with the object of disgust she had found herself with. It wasn't as if him cheating hurt overall worse than what Nate or Chuck had done, but it hurt nonetheless, whether her heart was involved or not. She tried very hard to leave her emotions out of the task at hand. She and Chuck still had to finish their conversation on their prior making up. Somehow she feared Marcus's deception had changed everything for the worst.

"Should we knock?" Serena asked curiously.

Chuck and Blair looked back at her and glared. Her head reared back a little. She looked to Nate for the source of the problem but he hardly made a movement other than sympathy for Serena in the state of irritating the brunette masterminds before them. Chuck and Blair said nothing and turned back around. Blair pulled something out of her purse. The blonde couldn't quite see what it was, but it glinted in the moonlight and the light posts on the street.

"No, S, not when you have a key." Blair smirked as she slipped the device into the crack in the door knob. Chuck followed her, as did the other three, his heart swelling at how brilliant his girlfriend was. Not that he ever doubted.

Inside the home, the foyer consumed them. It was large, ever reaching past two floors and only a dimmed light drifted in from the sitting room to the right. Everywhere else in the house seemed to be drowned in darkness. Nate and Serena stood mesmerized. Blair took the lead with Chuck just behind her, their hands now separated. They walked softly so as to make as little noise as possible.

"Where are the servants?"

Blair swallowed her irritated huff and stomached the glare that threatened to stare Serena in the face. Consumed with emotions she was trying to push away, she could not possibly concentrate on the questions an inexperienced breaking and entering individual might have. Nate squeezed Serena's hand to silence her. She bit her lip in regret and decided to say no more. She noticed then just how tense and rigid Blair's body was. Chuck's was as well, but not nearly as much.

Suddenly, Blair stopped. The rest followed and not noisily either. She was grateful. For a moment Nate was about to invade her thoughts with a question of his own when he heard the reason for the brunette's additional halt. Moans emanated from the far hall.

"Not very subtle, are they?"

Blair ignored Chuck's smarmy comment, charging forward and in hindsight congratulating herself for deciding to wear flats instead of heels. It was an unusual occurrence.

Finally they arrived at the door Blair was sure led to the fateful room. Her hand lay slowly on the handle and she paused just briefly before opening it. She gulped, coming to the full realization it seemed, that she was going to see her technically current boyfriend messing around with his step-mother, the woman she had wanted to impress to gain status and admiration from the royals of the world.

Very suddenly she felt the steady grip of Chuck's hand on her own, probably in way of comfort or encouragement, but it made her want to jerk back and push him away angrily. She pushed away her kneejerk reaction and simply did not pay him notice. She turned the handle and slowly opened the door, pressing heavily on the hunch that they would not be moving their bodies heavily in the vicinity of the door the four teenagers peered through.

Luck was on their side. The two were in the midst of slowly pulling their clothes off across the room in the satin see through curtains aligning the far wall composed of an elegantly crafted mirror. Blair gagged. This time when Chuck's firm grasp encircled her wrist she did not feel an overbearing need to escape consume her. Somehow this time it gave her strength.

The door opened further of its own accord, and they all gaped at the sight. The two lovers were very much unaware of their uninvited guests. Snapping out of her reverie, Blair finally reached down into her purse to grab her cell phone and take a picture of the appalling sight. Neither she nor the three around her heard the footsteps approaching behind them. The voice belonging to the approaching form startled and stilled all of them, even the lovers across the room, if only a few seconds late.

"I don't think you'll be needing that, dear," the man stole the cell phone out of Blair's hand with ease. They all spun around and saw the Duke smiling at them. He was definitely grim soon afterwards though when the image in the far room remained constant.

"Catherine," he said in way of command. The woman stepped away gracefully from her step-son. She lightly placed some drifting locks from her face behind her ear. "Might I have a word with you?"

The four moved down towards the hall with one look from the Duke, who clearly wanted to speak with his wife in private, and away from his son, who he'd no doubt also speak with soon enough. Blair stalled for a good long moment, looking at Marcus with hard, cold eyes. He looked just as lost as he had at lunch, but now she found herself not caring in the least.

* * *

A/N: Wow. This took me SO long again!!! *cries* I'm SO sorry. I'm gonna start working on the final chapter tonight (since there is only one left! =D) and really, really REALLY try to get it up by tomorrow. If it's not up by Thursday, I might just lose it. Heheh. Review! =D Thanks for reading! ;p


	14. Misted Sunlight

A/N: Well, it is here. The final chapter. Aren't you relieved?? Lol. I am. XD I tried to get this up as soon as possible, so I hope there are not complaints. Thank-you so much, all of you who stuck around even though I took too long to finish this and the first 10 chapters are complete crap. XD haha. Ah well. Enjoy. I own nothing. Please review. =p

* * *

**Ch.14—Misted Sunlight **

"Miss Waldorf, if I might see you for a moment, please?"

She followed the retreating form into his office without a single look to the curious faces of her friends surrounding her. _She had known this was coming_, she told herself. Clearly aware of his wife's activities or not, it would not sit well that his son's supposed girlfriend was sneaking around his summer home in the middle of the night with her friends.

"Sir, if I might—" she turned back around to shut the door behind them, ignoring her friends' inquisitive stares again, "—if I might…justify my actions from last night…" she strode over to the desk he was not seated behind and waited for his head to lift and his faze to settle on hers.

"Enlighten me."

She gulped. The request had been well practiced but now she felt herself at a loss for words and with an extremely dry throat. Her hands began to sweat, thankfully not visibly and she wiped them subtly along the sides of her skirt.

"I was suspicious, Sir," she said, putting on a serious air. The Duke gestured to a chair a little behind her in which to sit in. She took the liberty lightly and brought herself to a more comfortable position on the plush cushion settled on the exquisite chair. "Marcus…has not been himself…lately," she said quite airily. The Duke raised an eyebrow.

"How so?"

"Well," she cleared her throat, flattening her palms over the knees crossing each other in her lap. "For starters, he was very much okay with how…" she bit her lip, realizing bringing Chuck into the topic would not help matters, "…h-he was startled when I—"

He cut her off by raising his hand in a silencing motion. "Allow me to help."

He swallowed hard, clearing her throat again, softer this time. Her plan to somehow get Nate the help he needed by way of talking to the Duke was completely and utterly failing. She didn't know where her courage or suavely speaking skills had gone, but they were nowhere present, almost as if they had never existed to begin with. Her eyes fastened on the Duke, hoping some sort of outlet would present itself in the humiliation he was bound to bestow on her any moment.

He leaned forward with his forearms on the desk before him. "Your friend, Nate Archibald, he was also in an affair with my wife. Is that correct?"

Blair's eyes widened momentarily. "From what I've heard," she shrugged nonchalantly. Inside she was screaming. The promise she had made to her ex was slowly beginning to falter. In all honesty she did not know why she had promised it to begin with. She blamed it on sympathy, but it was probably based on the fact that she had loved him for so long and that regardless of everything that had happened, throughout the years her loyalty for Chuck, Nate and Serena had grown undeniable strong and completely unbreakable. She had never really been _just_ friends with Nate, but her loyalty remained strong, even in the face of their messy break-up.

"Let me make one thing clear, I do not plan on assisting one of my wife's lovers financially."

Blair paled but said nothing, quickly recovering.

"This is not the first time I have caught my wife in the act of making love to another man. It is however the first time I've witnessed it with my own son."

Blair cringed. "I'm so sorry, Sir," she said hesitantly, as if just waiting for the blow to come. She was beginning to wonder why he hadn't kicked her out of his office yet.

He shrugged. "It is a normality among the royals, I've gathered. No beautiful woman marries a rich older man these days for much other than his wealth."

She pursed her lips.

"I imagine it is the same here on the Upper East Side?" he quirked an eyebrow. Blair nodded numbly. It seemed she had lost the ability to speak. Her innocent act had worked well enough on Marcus and the desperate willingness to appease the beautiful Duchess Beaton had worked decent enough as well. But this man was not someone to trifle with. She was almost lost without her grasp on schemes and manipulations sitting before him.

"Why have you called me in here, Sir?" she asked.

He stood to his feet. "While the last thing I want to do is assist the VanderBuilt heir by way of his recent financial issues, I was given an offer this morning that was hard to ignore, a few days ago actually."

Her eyebrows furrowed and she stared up at him in confusion.

"A young girl came to me with a photo some days ago of the Duchess and Marcus in a…passionate act. That was, as you can imagine, the reason I was so calm about witnessing them the night before. I didn't want to confirm the business entirely until I had sorted out their relationship for myself. In other words, I wanted to see for myself that what she had showed me in the picture on her phone was actually true. When she explained her reasons and how it connected to Nate Archibald, I was not pleased, but…she helped me unravel this unfortunate turn of events and though money is not an issue, she has given up a great deal of her own to assist him."

Blair blinked.

"I am taking the Duchess and my son back to England with me, where they will hopefully remain forever out of the dealings among you and your friends. Though, like I said, helping in any way a lover of my wife, however temporary they might have been, I have been struck with humility by the girl that came to visit me some days ago. And since my wife was actually the one binding your friend to her by way of blackmail recently, I am willing to pay the remaining funds for your friend on our departure."

Her lips parted and she stood slowly to her feet. She was hardly aware when he moved past her in a somewhat slow flurry.

"Sir?" she asked, turning to face him just as he made it to the door. He turned and looked at her warmly. "Who was the girl that came to visit you?" she inquired.

A small smile appeared on his face. "I believe she called herself Vanessa Abrams."

* * *

Chuck jolted when he saw the defeated, bewildered look on Blair's face as she exited the Duke's office. Nate and Serena seemed alarmed by how quickly the Duke strode past them and moved towards the front doors.

"Blair," Chuck said, walking up to her and gathering her hands in his own.

"Nate," she said, turning to the blonde boy who lingered just across from them beside Serena. "I think you should talk to Vanessa."

He blinked. "Well, I…"

"Nate," she said, more demanding this time but in an incredibly soft tone that he had never heard her use. It stilled him in a way that almost scared him. There was something in her tone that spoke of humility. Her eyes watered with it.

"Okay," he said, giving in. It was as if his will was ripped away from him. Her eyes were so deep and pleading, hardly that someone who had followed the older man into his office with a determined goal in mind. _No, this was someone else._

Serena looked at Blair, searching her features for some sort of hint as to what she was really feeling. "Are you okay, B?" she asked, stretching her hand out to lightly grasp her friend's wrist. Blair's head snapped up to her and she shook it off.

"Yes, of course, S," she said, smiling. It actually looked genuine. "I'm just a little…shocked is all," she cleared her throat, then charged forward once again, the rest of them in tow. Though, one glance from Blair, and Nate was sprinting off to visit Vanessa. Both Chuck and Serena found the demand in Blair's eyes awfully peculiar, but said nothing.

They were just to the gates of the Beaton summer house when Blair heard the Duke call back to her. She spun back around, her hand hanging loosely around Chuck's.

"If there are any problems, please don't hesitate to contact me."

She nodded once. "Thank-you, Sir."

He smiled politely and just before leaving flicked his eyes to Chuck and Blair's hands which were so very close together. He smirked, almost cracked a full-out grin but instead spread a warm look to the three and turned back to the vehicle in which the whole Beaton vehicle was about to depart.

Chuck was smirking and his eyes were wild with fire when Blair turned to look at him.

"Do you think he knows?" she murmured. He nodded once, his heart swelling in his chest that the knowledge had spread and been accepted, even to the one person that probably could have made matters worse.

"Oh definitely." He slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her towards the exit. Blair caught Marcus's fallen gaze as she passed through the gates. Chuck's eyes hardened on him and his grip clenched firmly on Blair's curved form. Blair found herself continuing not to care. She almost made out with Chuck right on the spot, but figured it would not be the wisest of decisions. Mr. Beaton Jr. and his scandalous step-mother were more twisted than Chuck times two, and she wanted nothing more to do with them. She turned and looked Chuck deeply in the eyes. Her eyes sparkled.

"I love you," she whispered. Now it was his turn to control the butterflies beating wildly against him. Softly he nuzzled his face against hers and the three slipped into the limo now beside them. Serena kept her comments to herself.

* * *

"Yeah, I'm almost there. No, I have no idea what got into her, but I know it had to do with Vanessa. I've never seen her look like that though…" he said, almost whispering his last contemplative statement.

"I know what you mean. It was almost like…"

"She was in awe? Or…beaten by something she didn't expect?"

"Yeah…something like that," he shrugged. "I can't imagine what Vanessa would have done though. I only told her about the whole situation a few days ago. It's not like she would have had a long amount of time to act on it, especially in such a drastic way that made Blair look like she had seen someone die and then risen from the dead at the exact same time."

"Mm," she chuckled lightly. "Yeah."

The stairs creaked slightly and Serena smirked on the other end.

"Almost there, Archibald?"

"How could you tell? The stairs?"

She laughed. "Yeah, I mean, I've been there so many ti—" she cut herself off, gasping softly at what she had subconsciously fallen into conversation about. There was a long pause and the creaking stopped. She realized then that he must've stopped.

"They're not all creaky," she admitted, attempting a light laugh. There was nothing but silence on the other end. When the silence continued she heard him sigh and immediately felt guilty.

"Nate—"

"Serena, what exactly happened between you and Dan? I know the two of you didn't talk all summer, but you've had at least two or three talks in the last few days and I can tell by the way look like you're going to cry when you come back from them that they didn't go well."

"No, they did!" she insisted, hardly able to comprehend how she had gotten so defensive so fast. Nate was only concerned. She sighed, torn between the desire to have him just hang up on her and the need to have him pry for more information, just so she could let it all out. She hadn't told a soul about what had happened between them. Not even Blair.

"We just talked about what happened…" she trailed off. Nate remained silent, listening intently until she had finished with what she needed to say. "…it's not that he can't trust me, and it's not that I couldn't forgive him about Georgina. All of that is in the past now. It's just…" she sighed again. "I don't know. I feel like we were never meant to work to begin with."

"Serena," he could no longer hold his tongue. If anything Dan and Serena had beat all the odds. He couldn't let her forget that. "Dan got past your mother and Grandma Cece. Aside from the occasional remark from Chuck and Blair, if you guys got past what happened with Georgina, there should be no reason why you guys can't work it out."

She smiled weakly. "Maybe we just need time."

"It's been _three months_."

She swallowed hard. "I don't know how to fix it!" she cried. "It just all still feels so broken," she said in an incredibly small voice. Nate felt like he had just been punched in the stomach and someone had stabbed and twisted a dagger in his heart. He _hated_ when she cried. "Every time we talk it just feels like so many unfixable issues are brought up," she sighed.

"Listen," he said softly after a few quiet sobs had left her. "I'm going to see Vanessa right now, to find out what's all been going on. But I'm coming to you straight afterwards."

"Nate, no, you need to—"

"Don't tell me what I need to do," he smirked. "Vanessa and I are already together, and if what I'm hearing from you is for real, which I know it is, I'm sure she'll be sitting and consoling Dan just as I'll be doing with you in the next hour."

She didn't argue. "Forty-five minutes?"

"Deal."

The second half of the stairs didn't creak in the least and Nate began to wonder if he had imagined it. His conversation with Serena flooded his mind but he tried to push it away, at least for as long as it took to coerce much needed information out of Vanessa_. It would not be easy at first_, he told himself. From what he knew of Vanessa, she was not one to boast about her good deeds, no matter who for. In truth he did not even know if Vanessa was here at the Humphrey residence, but he had hardly seen her in another location besides here and the café she worked at. Though it was not late, he knew she did not work today and so had dismissed it entirely as a possibility, though there was a gnawing at him now to investigate other possibilities first.

_No. You've already come this far, and if you go gallivanting all over Brooklyn looking for someone who might be just behind this door, you'll never get to Serena and her broken heart in time._

He cleared his throat and reached for the door handle with a surprisingly shaky hand.

"Nate!" Rufus said, surprised. Nate was equally surprised at how the elder Humphrey had managed to open the door just before he reached the handle. He did not ask questions.

"Uh…" he blinked, managing after a moment to gather his thoughts, "Is Vanessa here?"

He smiled warmly. "Come in," he said, stepping aside to let him in. "She's in Dan's room, I believe, but she told us she was expecting you, so I know she'll be delighted you finally arrived."

His eyebrows narrowed. "But I didn't—"

"Yes, I know, but she said she knew you were coming. Something about some sort of information you probably found out about this morning…?" he said, sounding confused himself. "I'll go get her," he said, coming back around to the original point. Nate opened his mouth to respond with something, but within seconds it seemed Vanessa was walking out of the lit room at the end of the hall and walking towards him.

They were in Jenny's room in a matter of minutes. Nate felt awfully awkward at the choice of location, but Rufus insisted on it since Dan seemed in an almost anti-social mood and Jenny would be gone for at least the next few hours on some outing with Eric.

"Okay, so let's get right to the point."

Nate's eyes widened momentarily at her directness but he squeezed his hands together in his lap and braced himself, hesitantly looking up at her. "The Duke…"

"I paid ten thousand dollars towards your father's financial…debt," she said, sounding unsure of her wording. Nate's eyes widened further and his jaw dropped.

"Vanessa, where did you get that kind of money?" he asked, aghast. "I mean, I'm sure – from what you've told me, that your parents don't have a college fund for you. And, no offense, but I know you don't have the kind of funds to be just tossing out on a guy you know very little about."

She sighed, tensing a little. "Yes…I know. You're right," she nodded once, very slightly avoiding his gaze. "My parents don't have a college fund for me, never did. But, my sister, who though is very much like them, did sense that college might be a desirable institution for me to invest myself in, that I would want it. So, unbeknownst to me, she started a fund. I don't know how she got so much money together in so little time, but I do know that it was legal, and I want you to have it. It's the least I can do, and the Duke has agreed to pay the remaining amount so everything will be covered and the government won't have to deprive you of the wealth that is rightfully yours, despite what your father is done."

"Vanessa," he said, placing his hands on hers and holding them tight. "I appreciate what you're trying to do, but…I did have you take the SAT this last spring. What happens if you do decide to go to school? How will you pay for it?"

She winced. "I didn't use…all of it towards you," she offered.

He sighed and shook his head. "I can't take your money, Vanessa."

She swallowed hard and then held up her head high to prepare herself for the final bit of news she had stored away and practiced in telling him for the past few days and especially since that morning.

"Well, that's too bad, Archibald, because I've already had it transferred. The police, according to what the Duke told me, will be receiving the rest of the money early tomorrow morning."

He looked at her in continued shock. She couldn't even tell if he was breathing. Her fingers twisted into his and she scooted closer to him, now cupping his face.

"Let me do this for you, Nate. _Please_."

Her pleading eyes got the best of him, just like Blair's had done earlier that morning. Now he understood the expression that had been painted across the brunette's face. Blair, Chuck and Serena surely had more than enough, if needed, to fix what a mess his family life had become, but a middle class girl from Brooklyn had sacrificed the majority of funds her own flesh and blood had put together for the starting of her life after high school, and she'd left no time for questioning in helping him. He wondered if her sister would be furious. It didn't seem an issue when he looked into her deep eyes.

He managed a subtle nod. "Okay," he breathed, running a hand through his hair as her hand dropped back into her lap. "I guess I don't have a choice," he chuckled, shaking his head. She smiled, the dimples lighting up her face. "Thank-you," he said very seriously. She stared on at him in complete adoration. He couldn't comprehend for a second how he had gotten so lucky.

* * *

The heavenly scent of scotch and Chuck surrounded her and she found herself snuggling closer to the warm body she was wrapped up in. She had expected him to still be sleeping but when she finally opened her eyes a few minutes later, he was staring down at her, cute little classic Chuck smirk on his face.

"How long were you watching me?" she asked, quirking an eyebrow, amused.

"Long enough to hear you moan my name," he whispered hotly in her ear. His breath tingled her senses and sent a chill up her spine despite being beneath the layers of warm blankets.

"But I haven't been moaning your name…" she managed, gasping when he bit down and sucked on her earlobe, "…this morning." He smirked again, peppering kisses from her jaw line up to her nose and possessively claiming her lips in a long, scorching kiss. When they parted she could hardly breathe.

"Chuck," she gasped in the midst of heavy breaths.

"See," he said cockily. "You can't stop saying my name."

She rolled her eyes and pushed at him playfully. "Come on, asshole, we have school today, and if I remember correctly, you don't have any clothes here," she looked at him pointedly, standing to her feet and traipsing around her bed in the direction of her closet.

He gaped. "Well then you don't remember correctly." He pulled her down to him before she had gotten too far and pressed his lips into hers again. Despite herself she found her hands swept up in his hair and her mind escaping to only the movements of his lips against hers. Her eyes widened when she felt his strong, sensual hand traveling up her leg.

"Mm, no!" she nearly shrieked, jumping to her feet. "We have school," she ground out, shooting him a demanding look. He chuckled, standing with her.

"Fine, Waldorf, but let me show you." He dragged her to the far side of her closet inside it and pointed to the uniforms and casual wear of his own that hung neatly on the clothes rack.

"See?" he said again, far too proud of himself for being right twice, give or take a little imagination. Her parted lips smirking was all the reward he needed and he swept her up in his arms again.

"Well played, Bass," she murmured against him. His face settled sweetly against hers, nuzzling her gently. She smiled, butterflies bubbling up inside her. She sighed contently.

"We're okay, right?" he asked suddenly. It took her a moment to adjust to the switch in his tone but once she had found it she delighted in his concern for _them, _and how_ she _felt. She nodded softly.

"Yep."

"Because I know we were interrupted before, and…"

"Shh," she silenced him with a hand over his mouth. "We're fine, Bass. Just kiss me."

He smirked and removed her hand to kiss her sweetly on the lips. He growled against her and she could feel his arousal on her thigh.

"Chuck," she moaned out.

"_See_," he almost sang out. She laughed against him.

"School," she said, pulling back and looking intently into his eyes. "Focus."

His eyes roved over her face and then rested back on her eyes. The smirk slid back onto his prodding, full lips. "For you, Waldorf? Anything."

She gave in and kissed him a little more before forcing the two of them to get dressed and head off to school. _Gossip Girl_, predictably, was the first to catch their intertwined fingers and fleeting kisses on the way to school and throughout the day. It was official. They were dating. And amongst Nate, Vanessa, Serena and Dan…their hearts were healing. The summer had proved one thing. Avoiding the inevitable inability to function and really _live_ was pure denial and nothing more. Without love and the recognition of it and the forgiveness for cursed mistakes, life was unable to survive.

Butterflies were an excellent reminder of that. Second chances were just a risk they'd all have to take. But it was worth it.

* * *

A/N: Okay, I'm not exactly sure on the ending, and two of my scenes were too short I know…and I didn't exactly work out the closure of Dan and Serena, but it's meant to be sort of open-ended, that they work things out eventually with the help of Nate and Vanessa! *beams* lol. I hope you enjoyed this. Thanks to all of you who stuck around for the whole bit. You are wonderful. Please review! =D


End file.
